The fifth consecutive monthly increase in the U.K. house prices amid limited supply took average asking prices to a record, a survey by Rightmove showed Monday. House prices hit a record GBP 249,841 in May, as new sellers raised their prices by 2.1 percent from the prior month. Prices were up by the same magniture in April.
The Japanese government on Monday upgraded its assessment of the economy for the first time in two months, as a weak yen helped revive the country's exports and factory output. "The Japanese economy is picking up slowly," the Cabinet Office said in its May monthly report. This was an upgrade from previous month's assessment when it said that economy was showing signs of picking up.
The dollar is climbing against all of its major competitors at the end of the trading week. The stronger than expected increase in U.S. consumer confidence helped to assure investors of recovery in the U.S. economy, following the release of some weak data in recent days.
Consumer sentiment in the...
Led by building permits and the interest rate spread, leading economic indicators in the U.S. rose by more than anticipated in the month of April, according to a report released by the Conference Board on Friday. The Conference Board said its leading economic index rose by 0.6 percent in April following a revised 0.2 percent decrease in March.
Consumer sentiment in the U.S. has seen a substantial improvement in the month of May, according to a report released by Thomson Reuters and the University of Michigan on Friday, with the consumer sentiment index rising to its highest level in nearly six years.
Decline in Singapore's non-oil exports eased in April amid an improvement in overseas demand for the country's non-electronic products, a report from International Enterprise (IE) Singapore showed Friday. On a year-on-year basis, non-oil domestic exports fell 1 percent in April following a 4.8 percent fall in the previous month. The rate of decrease was weaker than the 1.9 percent drop expected.
Core machine orders in Japan surged a seasonally adjusted 14.2 percent on month in March to 793.1 billion yen, the Cabinet Office said on Friday rising for the fifth time in six months. The headline figure shattered forecasts for an increase of 3.5 percent following the downwardly revised 4.2 percent increase in February.
Output producer prices for New Zealand gained 0.8 percent in the first quarter of 2013 compared to the previous three months, Statistics New Zealand said on Friday.
That topped expectations for a flat reading following the 0.1 percent decline in the previous three months.
Input producer prices...
The dollar is slightly weaker against its major competitors Thursday, following the release of some disappointing economic reports. Weekly jobless claims increased more than expected, while housing starts declined more than expected.
With energy prices showing a substantial decrease, the Labor Department...
Manufacturing firms responding to the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's monthly Business Outlook Survey unexpectedly indicated that regional manufacturing activity has contracted in the month of May.
A report released by the Philly Fed on Thursday showed that its diffusion index of current activity fell to a negative 5.2 in May from a positive 1.3 in April.
With energy prices showing a substantial decrease, the Labor Department released a report on Thursday showing that U.S. consumer prices fell by slightly more than expected in the month of April.
The Labor Department said its consumer price index fell by 0.4 percent in April following a 0.2 percent drop in March. Economists had expected prices to decrease by about 0.3 percent.
While the Commerce Department released a report on Thursday showing that U.S. housing starts fell by much more than anticipated in the month of April, the report also showed a substantial increase in building permits. The Commerce Department said housing starts tumbled 16.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 853,000 in April from the revised March estimate of 1.021 million.
Following a recent downward trend, first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rebounded by much more than anticipated in the week ended May 11th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday. The report said initial jobless claims rose to 360,000, an increase of 32,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 328,000.
Eurozone exports grew for the third consecutive month in March giving a ray of hope that the region can emerge out of the recession that has now extended to a record six quarters. Exports increased at a pace of 2.8 percent in March from the previous month, when it grew only 0.2 percent, data published by Eurostat showed Thursday.
New Zealand's government said Thursday that it expects to attain a budget surplus in 2015 as the post-quake rebuild in Canterbury and recovery from the drought boost economic growth. Presenting the Budget 2013, Finance Minister Bill English said that the operating balance before gains and losses is expected to be in a surplus of NZ$75 million in 2014-15, higher than NZ$66 million projected.