The Bank of Japan will wrap up its monetary policy meeting on Tuesday and then announce its decision on interest rates, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. The BoJ is widely expected to leave its benchmark lending rate unchanged at 0.75 percent. Japan also will see March data...
The Treasury Department announced the results of this month's auctions of $69 billion worth of two-year notes and $70 billion worth of five-year notes on Monday. The two-year note auction drew a high yield of 3.812 percent and a bid-to-cover ratio of 2.65. Last month, the Treasury also sold $69...
UK retailers reported a sharp decline in sales in April and forecast further weakness, survey data from the Confederation of British Industry showed Monday. A net 68 percent of retailers said sales volumes declined in April compared to last month's balance of 52 percent, the Distributive Trades...
Singapore's industrial production expanded at an accelerated pace in March. Industrial production advanced 10.1 percent year-on-year in March, much faster than the 3.3 percent rise in February. Moreover, this was the fastest growth since December 2025. Among clusters, electronics output grew the most by 30.0 percent from last year on the back of robust AI-related demand.
German consumer sentiment is set to deteriorate sharply in May as income expectations collapsed due to rising inflation amid the war in Iran, the latest results of the NIM Consumer Climate powered by GfK showed Monday. The forward-looking consumer confidence index fell to -33.3 in May from -28.1 in April. This was the lowest score since February 2023.
Consumers in Finland expressed a more pessimistic attitude in April. The consumer confidence index dropped to -12.5 in April from -11.5 in March. Moreover, this was the weakest score since April 2024, when it was -12.6. Consumers' outlook regarding their own and Finland's economy in 12 months' time were very poor. The manufacturing confidence indicator rose to +1.0 in April from -1.0 in March.
Malaysia's producer prices increased for the first time in a year in March. Producer prices rose 1.1 percent year-on-year in March, reversing a 3.4 percent decrease in February. Meanwhile, economists had expected a further fall of 2.7 percent. The price index for the mining sector grew sharply by 26.5 percent from last year, largely due to the surge in costs for the extraction of crude petroleum.
Japan's leading index strengthened more than initially estimated in February to the highest level in three-and-a-half years. The leading index, which measures future economic activity, rose to 113.3 in February from 112.0 in January. The flash reading was 112.4. The coincident index that measures the current economic situation dropped to 116.3, as estimated, from 118.3 in January.
China's industrial profits increased notably in the first quarter, despite challenges posed by geopolitical tensions, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Monday. Industrial profits logged an annual growth of 15.5 percent in the January to March period. Profits had increased 15.2...
Japan will on Monday see February results for its leading and coincident indexes, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. The leading index is expected to add 0.3 percent on month, slowing from 1.7 percent in January. The coincident is tilled to fall 1.6 percent on month after...
Revised data released by the University of Michigan on Friday showed consumer sentiment in the U.S. deteriorated by less than previously estimated in April but still hit a record low. The University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index for April was upwardly revised to 49.8 from the preliminary reading of 47.6. Economists had expected the index to be unrevised.
French consumer sentiment weakened to a three-year low in April, a monthly survey from the statistical office INSEE showed Friday. The consumer confidence index dropped to 84 in April from 89 in the previous month. This was the lowest score since April 2023.
Slovenia's economic sentiment turned more negative in April to the lowest level in over two-and-a-half years. The seasonally adjusted economic sentiment dropped to -5.3 in April from -2.5 in the previous month. Among components, the morale for the retail sector eased notably to 1.0 from 14.0. The index for the manufacturing sector worsened to a 10-month low of -9 from -8.
Confidence among Brazilian consumers improved further in April to the highest level in four months. The seasonally adjusted FGV IBRE consumer confidence index rose to 89.1 in April from 88.1 in March. However, any score below 100 indicates a pessimistic outlook. The rise in confidence was mainly attributed to the current conditions index, rising to 85.3 from 83.2 in March.
Russia's central bank reduced its benchmark rate for the eighth consecutive time to contain rising inflation. The Board of Directors of the Bank of Russia decided to cut its interest rate by 50 basis points to 14.50 percent. The bank said it will assess the need for further key rate cuts at its upcoming meetings depending on sustainability of inflation slowdown.
April 24, 2026 15:15 ET Economics news flow was relatively light this week even as the conflict in the Middle East continued, raising concerns for policymakers. In the U.S., spending data, initial jobless claims and pending home sales were the highlights. Business confidence in the biggest euro area economy was in focus in Europe. Inflation data from Japan gained attention in Asia.