Week Ending 19th April 2019 Stocks in Asia traded mixed Friday after modest gains in their U.S. and European counterparts, ahead of a holiday weekend in many countries. Friday shares edged higher in Japan and Korea, and fluctuated in China, with trading volumes lighter than usual. The yen steadied and Japanese 10-year bond yields rose […]

China’s economy grew slightly faster than expected in the three months to March, official figures released Wednesday showed. The economy expanded at 6.4% in the first quarter from a year earlier, ahead of a Reuters forecast of 6.3%. Beijing has taken steps to boost its slowing economy, including tax cuts, while trying not to inflate […]

Japan kicked off its G-20 presidency by reminding the world that the global economy isn’t out of the woods yet. “The extension of global growth continues but at a slower pace than anticipated in October,” Finance Minister Taro Aso said in a press conference wrapping up the gathering of Group of 20 finance ministers and […]

Federal Reserve officials signaled on Wednesday they’re prepared to move interest rates higher or lower as needed, but an unusual mix of risks means they could remain on hold all year. Despite an economy that is forecast to grow above trend with low unemployment, policy makers are worried about external drags such as slowing European […]

President Donald Trump says the US has found agreement on some of the toughest points in trade talks with China. He said a deal could come in the next four weeks, but added some sticking points remained. The Chinese echoed the optimism, with President Xi Jinping touting substantial progress, according to the Chinese state news […]

The US Federal Reserve does not expect to raise interest rates for the rest of 2019 amid slower economic growth. After a two-day meeting, monetary policymakers voted unanimously to keep the US interest rate range between 2.25%-2.5%. Fed members changed their outlook for 2019 from the two increases predicted in December to no movement. The […]

The US economy created the lowest number of jobs for a year-and-a-half in February, well below forecasts. Just 20,000 new jobs were created last month against expectations of a 180,000 increase, official figures show. It is the lowest growth in non-farm payrolls since September 2017 when employment was affected by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. However, […]

Chinese negotiators have agreed to extend their stay in Washington, as the US and China push to strike a trade deal. The decision was the latest sign that the two countries may be nearing an agreement, as they look for a way out of last year’s punishing trade war. In a statement shared by the […]

Retail sales bounced back sharply in January, rising by 1% on the previous month, official figures showed. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the amount of goods sold rose by 1%, after falling by 0.7% in December, with discounts in clothing helping to boost sales. Compared with a year ago, retail sales were 4.2% […]

The US economy added a stronger-than-expected 304,000 jobs in January, official figures have shown. The figure was far in excess of economists’ forecasts of 165,000. However, December’s jobs growth figure was revised to 222,000, down from an initial estimate of 312,000. Last month saw jobs being added in leisure and hospitality, construction, health care, transportation […]