Page 8 - Global Economy

Global interest rates chokehold on world economy set to loosen slowly

Geopolitical tension, with conflict between Israel and Iran threatening conflagration in the Middle East, is an additional risk variable

Goldman, Morgan Stanley raise China's 2024 growth outlook as exports rise

The world's second-largest economy has struggled to regain momentum as the property sector and consumer spending remain weak

US consumer prices rise more than expected in Mar amid rises in fuel costs

The consumer price index rose 0.4% last month after advancing by the same margin in February, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said on Wednesday

As India's GDP growth speeds up, can it drive the global economy?

With China's growth slowing, India could become the new engine of global economic growth, but it will take strategic investments, increased labour participation, and more to achieve its ambitions

Nonfarm payrolls in US increased by 303,000 last month, shows data

Data for February was revised slightly lower to show 270,000 jobs added instead of 275,000 as previously reported

Japan's economy recovers to full capacity, keeps rate hike prospects alive

The BOJ ended eight years of negative interest rates and other remnants of its unorthodox policy last month

Pakistan economic growth seen below 3% for next 2 years, says World Bank

The economy is set to grow 1.8% in the current fiscal year ending June 30 and will expand to 2.3% in the following year and 2.7% in 2026 if there is continuous fiscal consolidation

Natural disasters cause $65bn loss in APAC in 2023; 91% loss uninsured: Aon

As per the report, 398 natural disaster events occurred globally in 2023, resulting in an economic loss of $380 billion in the year.

US yields hit multi-month peaks as solid data trims rate cut bets

The benchmark 10-year yield climbed to 4.405% , its strongest level since late November. It was last up 5 basis points (bps) at 4.379%

IMF approves $8 billion loan plan for Egypt as global bailout takes shape

The executive board's assent increases the Extended Fund Facility arrangement from the $3 billion originally approved in December 2022 to $8 billion

Ultra-orthodox need to join military to help economy: Israel's central bank

In its 2023 annual report, the central bank said Israel's war against Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Gaza that began on October 7 had highlighted the personnel needs of the military

Highlights: BJP fields ex-diplomat Taranjit Sandhu from Amritsar, singer Hans Raj Hans from Faridkot, ex-Cong MP Preneet Kaur from Patiala for LS 2024

From Amit Shah's visit to Assam to US Federal Chair Jerome Powell's statement on interest rates and keeping an eye on inflation, track all the news from around the world here

Fed doesn't need to be in a hurry to cut rates, reiterates Jerome Powell

Investors are now betting the US central bank will make that first cut in June

'No-fail' mission to protect Red Sea fails as Houthi attacks continue

The Houthi campaign, which claimed its first civilian ship sunk in early March and its first fatalities not long after, is also a growing threat to the global economy

Sri Lanka's economy records 4.5% growth in fourth quarter of 2023

After six successive quarters of negative growth, Sri Lanka's bankrupt economy is estimated to have recorded a growth of 4.5 per cent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2023, the Central Bank announced here on Tuesday. It was only during the third quarter of 2023 that the economy recorded positive growth after six successive quarters of negative growth experienced by the cash-strapped economy. The headline inflation, as measured by the year-on-year change in the Colombo Consumer Price Index, had decelerated to 5.9 per cent in February from 6.4 per cent in January. The gross official reserves improved to USD 4.5 billion by the end of February 2024, which includes the swap facility from the People's Bank of China. Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe said the reserve buildup was better than the Central Bank's expectations. The reserve buildup was supported by considerable net purchases by the Central Bank from the domestic foreign exchange market amidst increased foreign currency inflow

Inflationary pressure

Fiscal expansion increased inflation in the developed world

Switzerland unexpectedly cut key interest rate by 25 basis points to 1.5%

Officials in Zurich lowered their benchmark to 1.5%, the first such reduction for one of the world's 10 most-traded currencies since the pandemic abated

Bank of England keeps key interest rate unchanged at 16-yr high of 5.25%

The Bank of England kept its main interest rate unchanged at a 16-year high of 5.25 per cent on Thursday even though inflation continues to drop from multi-decade peaks. The decision was widely anticipated in financial markets and comes a day after the US Federal Reserve also left its key interest rate unchanged. But unlike the Fed, the Bank of England gave few explicit indications that it was getting ready for a series of interest rate reductions in the months to come. The Swiss National Bank went the other way on Thursday, with a surprise cut to its main interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point. Market expectations that lower UK interest rates were on the horizon got a boost Wednesday with news that inflation fell to a 2.5-year low of 3.4 per cent in February more than anticipated and is now not far off the Bank of England's target rate of 2 per cent. The bank's rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee acknowledged that inflation has been trending lower and could fall bel

British businesses keep up recovery but prices still a worry, shows PMI

Closely watched by the BoE ahead of its 1200 GMT interest rate decision, the S&P Global Composite Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) inched down to 52.9 in March from 53.0 in February

Zimbabwe lets currency free-fall, working on exchange rate backed by gold

The country's local dollar has weakened against the US dollar every day in 2024, sending the price of a single loaf of bread from Z$6,105 to Z$19,357 in a mere 11 weeks