Week Ending 22nd June 2018 U.S. stocks climbed following gains in Europe as OPEC’s plans to boost output less than some investors had anticipated sent oil on a tear. Energy shares surged. The S&P 500 Index rose the most in a week even after Donald Trump revived concerns about a global trade war with a […]

The 35 largest banks operating in the US have enough money on hand to withstand a severe financial crisis despite rising levels of credit card debt. That was the finding of the annual “stress tests” conducted by the US central bank, the Federal Reserve. The US introduced the tests after the financial crisis to monitor […]

US President Donald Trump is to impose 25% tariffs on $50bn worth of Chinese goods, accusing Beijing of intellectual copyright theft. Tariffs that affect more than 800 products worth $34bn in annual trade are due to come into effect on 6 July. The White House said it would consult on tariffs on the other $16bn […]

US jobs growth was faster than expected in May, as employers added 223,000 positions. The unemployment rate fell further to 3.8%, having fallen to 3.9% the previous month, bringing the rate to an 18-year low. The average hourly pay of private sector workers increased 2.7% year-on-year, compared with 2.6% in April. Surveys of economists had […]

The Bank of England said the UK economy has hit a “temporary soft patch” as it kept interest rates on hold at 0.5%. The Bank cut its growth forecast for the year to 1.4%, down from the forecast of 1.8% made in February. The Bank says that cut is almost entirely due to the disruption […]

US job growth slowed sharply in March, as employers added 103,000 positions over the month. The figure was lower than expected, and left the unemployment rate unchanged at 4.1%. Analysts said the cold weather may have contributed to the slowdown, which was anticipated to some degree after February’s blockbuster gains. The low unemployment rate may […]

Asian shares have been hit by fears that US President Donald Trump’s plan for tariffs on up to $60bn of Chinese products could trigger a trade war. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 4.5% and the Shanghai Composite fell 3.6%. China responded to news of the planned tariffs by saying that while it did not want […]

Job creation in the US economy surged last month, but the annual rate of wage growth slowed. The economy created 313,000 jobs in February, official figures show, far in excess of analysts’ expectations. However, the unemployment rate remained at 4.1%, while the annual earnings growth rate slowed to 2.6% last month. January’s annual wage growth […]

The US has rejected a proposed merger between the Chicago Stock Exchange and a Chinese-linked investor group. The decision comes after more than two years of reviews by officials. The tie-up was initially approved by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, pending further approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). But […]

A rise in oil prices and higher imports contributed to a widening of the UK’s goods trade deficit in December. The gap between exports and imports rose to £13.6bn, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, which was higher than analysts’ forecasts. Separate ONS data showed industrial output experienced its biggest fall since 2012, largely […]