The world's third biggest economy sank into recession, posting two consecutive quarters of contractions, meeting analysts' expectations. Japanese gross domestic product shrank by 0.9% in the July-September period, after a 0.03% contraction in the previous quarter. On a yearly basis, the economy contracted by 3.5% in the three months through September. The weak economic performance is adding to signs that
The amount of cash Swiss commercial banks hold with nation's central bank fell slightly in the week to December 7, a sign that investors are getting less anxious over Eurozone's financial woes. Sight deposits of domestic banks declined to 292,764 million francs last week, down from 293,104 million a week earlier. At the same time, the tendency remains negative, proving
The U.K. is going to hold the referendum on the nation's membership in the European Union, the Prime Minister David Cameron said Monday. People will be offered two choices, either new, looser relationship with the EU or a British exit. Cameron's willingness to stay in the 27-member bloc created some tensions in his own Conservative Party. In the meanwhile, Cameron
The Federal Reserve is likely to announce on Wednesday that it will continue buying Treasury securities in order to stimulate growth in the 2013. Moreover, the Fed may expand its asset-purchase programme, known as Quantitative Easing, to $85 billion worth of securities per month. Before easing up the stimulus programme, the Fed wants to see a big improvement in the
Investor confidence about the Eurozone economic outlook improved for the fourth consecutive month in December, boosted by the ECB's pledge to save the common currency, the Sentix research institute said Monday. A gauge, which measures sentiment in the euro-area economy, improved to -16.8, up from -18.8 in November, however, still remains below the 0 threshold, which separates optimism from pessimism.
Japanese leading indicators rose more than expected in October, indicating some positive signs for the world's third largest economy. The Cabinet Office said that nation's index of leading economic indicators, which is designed to predict the direction of the economy, advanced to a seasonally adjusted 92.5, up from 91.6 in the preceding month. The reading came above analysts' expectations of
The reserves held by the Swiss National Bank unexpectedly for a second straight month in November, as the nation's currency hovered above the 1.20 per euro cap, which was imposed by the central bank in September 2011. The SNB held 424.826 billion Swiss francs ($456.16 billion) in foreign currency in the last month, compared with a revised 426.769 billion francs
British manufacturing output contracted more than initially expected in October, reinforcing fears that the economy will shrink again at the end of this year. Manufacturing output shrank by 1.3% in October after stagnating in September, and was 2.1% lower from a year ago, posting the biggest drop since June, the figures from Office for National Statistics showed. The overall industrial
The U.S. unemployment rate dropped to the lowest level since December 2008, while payrolls rose more than expected in November, a positive sign that the labour market in the world's biggest economy is finally on the path of recovery. The country added 146,000 jobs in November, as the economy seemingly shrugged off super storm Sandy. At the same time the
The European Central Bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged on Thursday, however, a majority of policy makers in the region are showing willingness to cut the rate. The reduction is likely to be seen early next year if the economy does not pick up. In the meanwhile, Germany and Austria suggested that an improvement is unlikely, forecasting scant growth
Japanese residents increased their purchase of foreign bonds last week, a negative sign for the world's biggest economy, as investors are not willing to invest money in the nation's economy. The report by the Ministry of Finance showed that Japanese investors bought 494.2 billion yen ($6.0 billion) in overseas bonds and notes in the week ended November 30, while sold
The inflation rate in Switzerland fell unexpectedly in November due to the fall in fuel, rents and food costs, adding to signs that the Swiss National Bank will not remove its cap on the nation's currency. Swiss prices fell 0.4% from a year ago compared to a drop of 0.2% in the prior month, and were down 0.3% on a
The U.K. trade gap widened more than it was initially expected, as exports tumbled, led by a decline in capital goods. The Office for National Statistics said Thursday, that the goods trade deficit rose to 9.54 billion pounds ($15.4 billion) in October, up from 8.44 billion pounds in the previous month. At the same time, exports from the county lost
New applications for the unemployment benefits in the world's biggest economy fell for the third week in a row, as disruptions caused by super storm Sandy waned. The Labor Department said that the number of people who applied for U.S. jobless benefits fell by 25,000 to 370,000 in the week ended December 1, down from 395,000 a week earlier. The
The European Central Bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at a record low of 0.75%, after Mario Draghi pledged bank's readiness to buy government bonds, and as a result it lowered borrowing costs and boosted confidence that the Eurozone can emerge from recession next year. In the meantime, the ECB has revised down its region's growth forecasts for 2012
The Bank of Japan claimed its readiness to expand its asset purchase programme to boost economic growth if risks to the outlook heighten, Deputy Governor Kiyohiko Nishimura said on Wednesday. The BoJ is likely to loosen its monetary policy again this month in the face of growing political pressure. Moreover, the bank is planning to keep its stimulus programme in
Swiss cities, such as Zurich, Geneva and Bern, are among top ten places to live worldwide, a survey by a consulting company Mercer showed Wednesday. The low level of crime rate, political stability and good medical facilities are the main reasons why people are showing willingness to live in Switzerland. A survey, which takes into consideration political, social, socio-cultural, economic
The British economy is highly expected to contract by the end of this year, despite the improvement in the third quarter, the Office for Budget Responsibility said Wednesday. The economy will shrink by 0.1% in 2012, down from the previous time of the Budget in March, when the forecasts were for a 0.8% growth. At the same time the economy
The pace of service sector growth in the world's biggest economy continued gaining momentum in November, while the number of new orders rose as well, giving a positive sign for the economy. The Institute for Supply Management said its services index climbed to 54.7 last month, up from 54.2 the month before. The reading came above analysts' expectations of a
Retail sales across the 17 European Union countries that use the single currency fell more than expected in October, adding to concerns that the economy may struggle to pull out of a recession. Sales dropped 1.2% from a month ago, when they fell 0.6%, the EU's statistics office Eurostat said Wednesday. It is the biggest decline since April, when retail
Swiss consumers claimed their readiness to increase spending during Christmas shopping, the Swiss Christmas Retail Survey 2012 made by Deloitte showed on Tuesday. Consumers intend to spend around 996 Swiss francs ($1,076) this season, compared to 955 francs in the year ago. Only about 30% of all nations' consumers consider that they have lower spending power, compared to 41% in
Fears that the U.K. is heading for a triple-dip recession have heightened, as nation's construction sector contracted and confidence about the next 12 months dropped to its lowest level in almost four years. The Markit/CIPS Construction Purchasing Managers' Index tumbled to 49.3 in November, down from 50.3 in October, falling below the 50 level that separates a sector that is
With only few weeks remaining until the beginning of the so-called "fiscal cliff", republicans and democrats countered the president Barack Obama's proposal to avoid the mandatory tax increases and steep spending cuts with total value of $600 billion. However, the uncertainty has already hurt business spending for 2013, and in case politicians do not come up with the decision, the
The number of people in Spain, which are officially registered as unemployed, has edged up toward five million last month, a sign country's recession continues unabated. Spain's number of the jobless jumped 1.5% in November, compared with a month earlier, or by 74,296 people, leaving 4.9 million people out of work, report by the Labor Ministry showed on Tuesday. The