Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, released preliminary estimates just a few moments ago showing that annual inflation in the eurozone rose to 1.9% in May, down from April's 2.2% and below expectations of 2.0%. The largest contribution to inflation in May came from the food, alcohol, and tobacco sector, which rose at an annual rate of 3.3%,...
Asian markets closed lower on Tuesday, June 3, with Japanese indices posting declines, weighed down by a decline in Japanese government bond yields, while the Hang Seng Index led gains in Chinese markets. Bank of Japan Governor Ueda indicated in his remarks to parliament this morning that the central bank will raise interest rates after being convinced that economic and...
The US Institute for Supply Management (ISM) manufacturing survey showed growth in economic activity in the manufacturing sector fell below market expectations in May, declining for the third consecutive month to 48.5, down 0.2 points from April's reading of 48.7 and below market expectations of a rise to 49.3. In detail, the new orders index contracted for the fourth consecutive...
Data released just moments ago from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis showed that U.S. personal income rose by $210.1 billion in April, up 0.8% from 0.5% in March. The Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation measure, rose by 0.2% to $47.8 billion, compared to March's reading of 0.7%. The PCE rose by 2.1% year-over-year, compared...
Australian retail sales fell 0.1% month-on-month in April, according to data released Thursday morning by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, to $37,208.4 million. This fell short of expectations for a 0.3% increase, while the index rose 3.8% year-on-year. In detail, food retail trade fell by about 0.3% to $38.3 million in April, while clothing, footwear, and accessories trade declined by...
The minutes of the US Federal Reserve's two-week meeting, May 6-7, released at the end of trading on Wednesday, showed that many Fed members were concerned about the impact of tariffs on inflation and the rising likelihood of a recession. The US Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at its last meeting for the third consecutive time, with risks of...
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand's (RBNZ) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to cut the official cash rate (OCR) by 25 basis points to 3.35% at its meeting this morning, Wednesday, May 28, as expected, for the sixth consecutive meeting. The statement issued by the Bank indicated that annual consumer price inflation rose to 2.5% in the first quarter of...
New orders for durable goods fell in April after four consecutive months of growth, according to a report released by the U.S. Census Bureau just moments ago. Orders fell by $19.9 billion, or 6.3%, to $296.3 billion, compared to a 7.6% increase in March. This indicator bested market expectations of a decline of about 7.6%. Meanwhile, core orders excluding transportation...
Statistics Canada released data just moments ago showing retail sales rose 0.8% in March to $69.8 billion, following a revised 0.5% decline in February. Expectations were for a 0.6% increase, driven by a decline in motor vehicle and parts sales. Core retail sales, excluding gas stations and motor vehicle and parts sales, rose 0.2% in March. Sales rose in six...
Data released moments ago at the start of the European session today, Thursday, May 22, showed divergences in most of the services and manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Indexes (PMIs) in the Eurozone and the United Kingdom in the preliminary reading for May. The Eurozone services index continued to decline, reaching a 16-month low of 48.9 in May, compared to 50.1 in...