http://www.rttnews.comGlobal financial news, market analysis, economics and forex newsen-usFri, 13 Mar 2010 00:05:01 GMTBusiness inventories were essentially unchanged in the month of January, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Friday, with modest decreases in wholesale and retail inventories offsetting a modest increase in manufacturers' inventories.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1239206Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:25:23 GMTThe worst of the economic crisis is over but overall growth is still weak, European Central Bank Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny told Austrian newspaper Die Presse. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1239128Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:25:23 GMTHouse purchase loans in the U.K. fell by more than three times the decline in remortgages in January, data released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders suggested Friday. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1239096Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:10:37 GMTRetail sales unexpectedly showed a modest increase in the month of February, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Friday, with the unexpected growth partly due to a jump in sales by electronics and appliance stores. The report showed that retail sales rose by 0.3 percent in February following a downwardly revised 0.1 percent increase in January. The sales growth came as a surprise to economists, who had expected sales to edge down by 0.2 percent.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1239085Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:07:19 GMTAny Eurozone member country that fails to consolidate its budget or to restore competitiveness should be expelled from the currency bloc, Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble wrote in an opinion piece in the Financial Times on Friday.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1239047Fri, 12 Mar 2010 12:56:08 GMTBank of England policy maker Spencer Dale said Friday that a pause in monetary loosening does not necessarily mean that loosening has come to an end.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238938Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:42:34 GMTEurozone industrial production rose at a record pace in January on increased energy output, data released by the Eurostat showed Friday.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238921Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:32:04 GMTRating agency Standard & Poor's on Friday, raised its long-term foreign currency sovereign credit ratings on the Republic of Indonesia to 'BB' from 'BB-'. The outlook is positive.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238768Fri, 12 Mar 2010 09:29:34 GMTItaly's seasonally adjusted index of gross wages per full time equivalent increased 0.6% sequentially in the fourth quarter, the statistical office Istat said Friday. The industrial sector saw a 1% rise in gross wages and 0.5% growth in services.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238720Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:48:07 GMTFinnish trade deficit narrowed to EUR 55 million in January from EUR 70 million in December, data released by the National Customs Board showed Friday. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238684Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:49:23 GMTFinland's building costs were 0.2% lower in February 2010 than in February 2009, Statistics Finland said Friday. Labor costs in construction rose by 2.7% in the year. By contrast, prices of materials fell by 1% and those of other inputs by 3.5%. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238680Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:37:38 GMTNew Zealand's total residential dwelling sales recovered in February from their lowest level in nearly two decades, the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand said Friday. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238676Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:25:52 GMTThe Spanish consumer price index, or CPI, rose 0.8% year-on-year in February, slower than January's 1% increase, data released by the statistical office showed Friday. Economists had forecast the rate of inflation to ease to 0.9%. Core inflation was 0.1%, unchanged from January.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238674Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:24:58 GMTNew Zealand retail sales grew more than expected on fuel and auto sales in January, reversing a fall in December. However, weaker-than-expected growth in core retailing raised concern over the recovery in consumer spending.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238656Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:09:29 GMTChina's inflation would continue to rise in the first quarter and inflation expectations are increasing gradually, the People's Bank of China Assistant Governor Guo Qingping said Friday.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238622Fri, 12 Mar 2010 06:38:03 GMTThursday, the European Commission made third installment of its EUR 3.1 billion community loan to Latvia. The Commission made EUR0.5 billion disbursement as part of the balance of payments support. The community loan, agreed in January 2009, is part of a EUR 7.5 billion multilateral financial assistance package.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238552Fri, 12 Mar 2010 05:07:14 GMTJapan is scheduled to release final January numbers for industrial production on Friday, headlining a light day for Asian economic activity.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1238386Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:06:59 GMTWith the value of imports falling at a faster rate than the value of exports, the Commerce Department released a report Thursday morning showing that the U.S. trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed in the month of January. The report showed that the trade deficit narrowed to $37.3 billion in January from a revised $39.9 billion in December. The smaller deficit surprised economists, who had expected the deficit to widen to $41.0 billion.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237779Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:48:36 GMTThursday, the Swiss National Bank left its key interest rate unchanged for a fourth time to support the economy, which is emerging from the shadows of the worst recession.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237741Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:34:24 GMTCzech statistical office on Thursday sharply revised fourth quarter gross domestic product figures to show growth instead of a contraction reported initially. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237727Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:27:14 GMTWhile the Labor Department released a report Thursday morning showing a modest decrease in first-time claims for unemployment benefits in the week ended March 6th, the report also showed an increase in continuing claims. The report showed that initial jobless claims edged down to 462,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 468,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to slip to 460,000 from the 469,000 originally reported for the previous week.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237704Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:16:56 GMTThursday, the Philippine central bank maintained its key interest rate and decided to phase out liquidity-enhancing crisis response measures. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237628Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:51:58 GMTThursday, the Swiss National Bank left its key interest rate unchanged for a fourth time to support the economy, which is emerging from the shadows of the worst recession.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237563Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:16:15 GMTThe Eurozone economic recovery process is underway though it is likely to be uneven, European Central Bank Governing Council member Yves Mersch said Thursday.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237381Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:54:00 GMTThe expected rate of inflation among Britons reached the highest level since November 2008, a closely watched survey showed Thursday.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237366Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:38:57 GMTEurozone economic recovery is on track, although it is likely to remain uneven, the European Central Bank said in its latest monthly bulletin. The ECB Governing Council expects the euro area economy to grow at a moderate pace in 2010, in an environment marked by continued uncertainty.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237269Thu, 11 Mar 2010 09:16:53 GMTThe Dubai government has created a regulatory body for the utilities sector and will soon put a framework in place that could pave the way for the private sector to enter the business, according to a local media report.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237242Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:48:56 GMTAs expected, the Philippine central bank on Thursday kept its overnight borrowing or reverse repurchase rate at 4% and overnight lending or repurchase rate at 6%. http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237239Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:46:12 GMTHome sales in Spain grew 2.1% year-on-year to about 38,000 in January, the National Statistics Institute said on Thursday.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237221Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:33:23 GMTThe total output of Sweden's services sector increased a working day adjusted 2.4% year-on-year in January, Statistics Sweden said on Thursday.http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx?Id=1237202Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:08:30 GMT