China’s economy grew at its slowest pace since the early 1990s in the second quarter, official figures showed. In the three months to June, the economy grew 6.2% from a year earlier. The result was in line with forecasts. China has moved to stimulate its economy this year by boosting spending and delivering tax cuts. […]

Week Ending 12th July 2019 U.S. equities closed at a record high for a second straight day, and recorded a second consecutive weekly advance, as investors remained cautiously optimistic about prospects for easier monetary policy, despite a bigger-than-projected rise in a key inflation measure. The dollar retreated for a third day. The S&P 500 Index […]

The US labour market boomed in June, creating many more jobs than expected, according to the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It showed that 224,000 jobs were created in June, many more than the 160,000 that economists had forecast. The figures, a rebound from poor jobs data in May, eased concerns the […]

The United States and China have agreed to resume trade negotiations, easing a protracted row that has fuelled a global economic slowdown. US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping reached the agreement on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Japan. Mr Trump said the talks had been “excellent”. He had threatened to […]

The drumbeat for a Federal Reserve interest rate cut got louder on Friday, with one policy maker calling for a 50 basis point reduction. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said he had advocated for such a move at this week’s meeting, which ended with the central bank leaving rates unchanged. Other policy makers speaking on […]

The US economy created far fewer jobs than expected last month and wages also rose less than forecast. Some 75,000 jobs were created in May rather than the 185,000 expected by analysts, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said. The dollar dropped as markets assumed that the slower-than-expected job growth meant a rate cut by the […]

Concerns are growing over the strength of Germany’s economy – the largest in the eurozone – following the release of more gloomy official figures. Industrial production in April fell by 1.9% compared with the previous month and exports were 0.5% lower than a year earlier. Meanwhile new forecasts from the national central bank, the Bundesbank, […]

Facebook is finalising plans to launch its own crypto-currency next year. It is planning to set up a digital payments system in about a dozen countries by the first quarter of 2020. The social media giant wants to start testing its crypto-currency, which has been referred to internally as GlobalCoin, by the end of this […]

The US has reached a deal with Canada to lift tariffs on steel and aluminium imports in a move that could lead to approval for a new North American trade deal. In a joint statement, the US and Canada announced that a 25% tariff on steel imports, and of 10% on aluminium, will end in […]

The US unemployment rate dropped to its lowest level for more than 49 years in April, according to official figures.The jobless rate fell from 3.8% to 3.6%, the US Labor Department said, the lowest since December 1969. However, the fall was due to a large number of people – 490,000 – leaving the labour force […]