Japan's corporate service price index fell for the fourth consecutive month in September, the Bank of Japan reported Thursday. An index measuring corporate service prices erased 0.5% from a year earlier, from a 0.3% fall in the preceding month. Analysts had predicted Japan's CSPI to drop 0.4% last month. On a monthly basis, prices were flat following the 0.3% contraction
Credit Suisse is going to cut an extra 1 billion Swiss francs ($1.1 billion) of costs during the next three years, as a part of a cost-cutting plan that has already been announced. The bank is targeting 4 billion francs in cost savings by 2015 to bolster its profits. Earlier this week, Credit Suisse expressed its intention to fire 1,000-2,000
The UK economy emerged from its double-dip recession, posting the strongest growth in five years in the third quarter, boosted by the Olympic Games. British economy expanded 1.0% from the three months through June, above analysts' forecast of 0.6% growth. While the economy is showing signs of recovery, the Bank of England is now less likely to expand its economic
The number of people who applied for U.S. jobless benefits fell more than expected in the week ended October 20, a sign the labour market is making limited progress, the U.S. Department of Labor said Thursday. Initial applications for unemployment benefits tumbled 23,000 to 369,000, compared to expectations for a decrease of 22,000 to 370,000. The four-week moving average edged
The eurozone's M3 money supply increase slowed unexpectedly last month, the European Central Bank on Thursday. Growth of M3, which measures the change in the total quantity of domestic currency in circulation and deposited in banks among the region, decelerated to 2.7% in September, down from 2.8% in August, while analysts' had predicted M3 money supply to accelerate 3.0%. At
Japanese companies are expected to invest less in the world's second biggest economy, as tensions between countries escalated. More than 20,000 Japanese firms invested into China in order to take an advantage of low production costs and to find a surging market for everything from cars to cosmetics. As reported by the Japan's finance ministry, nation's direct investment in the
Swiss stocks edged higher on Wednesday, October 24, amid better-than-expected U.S. home sales data and improved Chinese manufacturing output, outweighing worsening economic data from the eurozone.
British factory orders posted an unexpected drop in October, adding to concerns that the country's economic slump could be deepening. The Confederation of British Industry said its index of industrial order expectations fell sharply to -23 in October, down from -8 a month earlier, above analysts' forecast of a decline to -6.
Purchases of new homes in the world's biggest economy jumped more than expected last month, a sign nation's property market is improving. Sales rose 5.7% to a 389,000 units in September, up from 368,000 in the prior month, reaching the highest level since April 2010. The improvement was mostly provided by the record-low mortgage rates and the growth of population.
Eurozone's services and manufacturing output contracted at a faster than predicted pace, as region's recession deepened. Markit, a market research group, reported on Wednesday eurozone's manufacturing purchasing managers' index dropped to a seasonally adjusted 45.3 in October, compared to a reading of 46.1 in September. While the business activity contracted at its fastest pace since June 2009, region's debt reached
The total number of new mortgages approved in the U.K. rose more than expected last month, hit by the global slowdown, the British Banker's Association said Tuesday. Mortgage approvals, which are a leading indicator of housing market activity, jumped 1.6 per cent to 31,175 in September, up from 30,683 in the previous month.
The Bank of Japan is likely to expand its asset-purchase fund to bolster economic growth, as the government piled fresh pressure on nation's central bank. During the next meeting at October 30, the BoJ is expected to cut its growth forecasts, as well as review its benchmark interest rates. The BoJ has already increased the size of its asset-purchase program
Major Swiss banks such as UBS and Credit Suisse are going to make around 7,000 employees redundant, as part of cost-saving measures in order to increase profit, the Der Sonntag newspaper reported Tuesday. UBS is to cut 3,000-5,000 jobs, while Credit Suisse may fire 1,000-2,000 workers. Banks worldwide are implementing cost-cutting measures to meet new capital requirements in times of
U.S. home values recorded its biggest gain since 2006, a sign the nation's property market is recovering. According to the Zillow, a real estate information service, the average price of the house rose 1.3% to $153,800 in the third quarter of 2012, up from $151,800 in the previous three months. However, the pace of recovery was uneven across the nation,
Spanish economy contracted for the fifth consecutive quarter, increasing pressure on country's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to ask Europe for financial help. Gross domestic product tumbled 0.4 per cent during the three months through September, matching the same contraction of the second quarter. Analysts had predicted Spanish economy to shrink 0.7 per cent in the third quarter of 2012.
Japan posted its worst September trade figures since 1979, as exports tumbled 10%, hit by the global slowdown, territorial dispute between China and Japan weighed on the economy as well. Monthly trade deficit increased to 558.6 billion yen ($7.0 billion), above analysts' expectation of a reading of about £2.3bn. At the same time, shipments to the world's second biggest economy
The amount of cash Swiss commercial banks hold with nation's central bank fell slightly in the week to October 19, a sign that investors are getting more anxious over Eurozone's financial woes. Sight deposits of domestic banks tumbled to 292.163 billion francs last week, down from 293.142 billion a week earlier, proving that the SNB is having less cash to
The number of U.K. businesses who gave up the ghost fell in September, as mid-size companies saw the greatest improvement in the insolvency rate, erasing 16 per cent to 92 companies. Insolvencies tumbled 3.1 per cent to 1,679 companies last month, after posting a 9.5 per cent drop in the previous month. Despite the better-than-expected data, the recovery may be
U.S. stocks traded mostly lower on Monday, as investors watched highly anticipated corporate results. Caterpillar Inc. (CAT), the world's largest maker of construction and mining equipment, downgraded its sales growth forecast for 2013, as the global economy decelerates.
Europe's biggest economy is likely to see a significant slowdown in the fourth quarter of 2012, due to the weak economic performance in the eurozone, the German central bank said on Monday. While many countries in the region fell into recession, German economy posted a growth of 0.5% in the first quarter and 0.3% in the second quarter.
Japanese all industries activity index rose less than expected last month, the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry reported Friday. A leading indicator of economic health, which accounts for about 60% of total industry activity, advanced slightly by 0.1%, up from -0.6% in the previous month, below analysts' forecast of and 0.2% increase.
Swiss stocks turned lower on Friday, as European Union leaders failed to discuss further aid for Spain and the latest round of earnings on both sides of the Atlantic pointed at the global slowdown, as it was initially expected.
U.K. posted its smallest September budget deficit since 2008, providing the government hope it can meet this year's deficit-cutting target. U.K. public sector net borrowing tumbled to £12.8bn last month, down from £13.5bn a year earlier. Despite the improvement in data, the government is still likely to announce cuts for future years.
Sales of previously owned homes in the world's biggest economy fell last month, as there were fewer homes available for sale, the National Association of Realtors said Friday. Existing-home sales dropped 1.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.75 million, compared to 4.83 million in August. At the same time, construction of new homes soared 15%, reaching the highest