Australia will on Friday release Q1 numbers for producer prices, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. In the previous quarter, producer prices were up 0.8 percent on quarter and 3.5 percent on year. South Korea will provide April data for imports, exports and trade balance....
A report released by the Commerce Department on Thursday showed U.S. economic growth reaccelerated in the first quarter of 2026 but came in slightly below economist estimates. The Commerce Department said gross domestic product shot up by 2.0 percent in the first quarter after climbing by 0.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025. Economists had expected GDP to jump by 2.1 percent.
The European Central Bank left its interest rates unchanged on Thursday, as expected, even as policymakers expressed increasing concern over the impact of the surging energy prices and the intensifying war in the Middle East.
The Labor Department released a report on Thursday showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell by much more than expected in the week ended April 25th. The report said initial jobless claims slid to 189,000, a decrease of 26,000 from the previous week's revised level of 215,000.
The Bank of England left its key interest rate unchanged on Thursday but cautioned that there is a risk of material second-round effects from the energy price shock, caused by the war in the Middle East, which could lead to future rate hikes. The BoE Monetary Policy Committee, led by Governor Andrew Bailey, voted 8-1 to hold the bank rate at 3.75 percent.
The German economy logged an unexpected faster growth in the first quarter, despite challenges posed by the war in the Middle East. Gross domestic product grew 0.3 percent sequentially in the first quarter, slightly faster than the revised 0.2 percent expansion seen in the fourth quarter of 2025, preliminary estimate from Destatis revealed Thursday.
France's economy remained flat in the first quarter due to sluggish domestic demand and weaker exports and consumer price inflation hit the highest since mid-2024, driven by surging energy prices, official data showed Thursday. Gross domestic product stalled in the first quarter after expanding 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter, according to the first estimate from the statistical office INSEE.
Industrial production in South Korea was up a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent on month in March, Statistics Korea said on Thursday. That exceeded expectations for an increase of 0.2 percent following the downwardly revised 5.3 percent increase in February (originally 5.4 percent). On a yearly basis,...
Japan is scheduled to release a raft of data on Thursday, highlighting a busy day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. On tap are March figures for industrial production, retail sales, construction orders and housing starts, as well as April results for its consumer confidence index. In February, industrial...
For the third consecutive meeting, the Federal Reserve on Wednesday announced its widely expected decision to leave rates unchanged, although the vote was unusually divided. The Fed said it decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 3.50 to 3.75 percent, citing its dual goals of maximum employment and inflation at the rate of 2 percent over the longer run.
Citing ongoing uncertainty, the Bank of Canada on Wednesday announced its widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged for the fourth consecutive meeting. The Bank of Canada said it decided to maintain its target for the overnight rate at 2.25 percent, with the Bank Rate at 2.5 percent and the deposit rate at 2.20 percent.
New orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods rebounded by more than expected in the month of March, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday. The Commerce Department said durable goods orders climbed by 0.8 percent in March after tumbling by a revised 1.2 percent in February.
A report released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday showed a sharp increase in new residential construction in the U.S. in the month of March but a steep drop in building permits. The Commerce Department said housing starts soared by 10.8 percent to an annual rate of 1.502 million in March after tumbling by 3.0 percent to a rate of 1.356 million in February.
Euro area economic confidence deteriorated to the lowest level since November 2020, underscoring the rising concern about the strength of economic activity amid the intensifying price pressures and supply chain disruptions. The economic sentiment index dropped more-than-expected to 93.0 in April from 96.2 in the prior month, results of a monthly survey by the European Commission showed on Wednes
Australia's consumer prices inflation accelerated at the fastest pace since 2023, driven by increases in housing and transport costs, data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed Wednesday. Consumer prices increased 4.6 percent on a yearly basis in March, marking the strongest inflation since September 2023.
May 01, 2026 15:54 ET Central banks dominated the economics news flow this week with almost all major ones announcing their latest policy decisions and many boosted expectations for a rate hike in June. In other news, several countries released the preliminary data for first quarter economic growth. In the U.S., comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell were also in focus as his term ends this month.