Japan’s services sector declined again in March. This was shown on Monday by figures from Markit Economics.
The Purchasing Managers Index for the services sector increased from 46.3 to 48.3 this time. The index has been at its highest level since January 2020.
It was announced last week that Japanese industry was growing at a faster pace in March. This Purchasing Managers Index rose from 51.4 to 52.7.
An index position greater than 50 indicates growth, while less than 50 means contraction.
Chinese industrial production increased sharply again in April, but less than in the first months of this year. This was shown by government figures on Monday. Production increased by 9.8 percent, after a plus of more than 14 percent in March and more than 35 percent in the first two months of this year. On a monthly basis, April saw an increase of 0.52 per cent. Retail sales in China also...
Taiwan is taking more stringent measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The 24 million inhabitants of the island state managed to keep the virus largely out of the door last year, but now the number of infections is increasing rapidly. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Taiwan has registered fewer than 1,500 infections and has never faced a far-reaching lockdown. The authorities...
The income of the average American rose sharply in March, although spending also rose, but less so. This was shown on Friday by figures from the US government. Incomes rose by as much as 21.1 percent in March, after a fall of 7.0 percent in the previous month. Spending increased 4.2 percent in March, after a 1.0 percent drop in February. The PCE core price index increased in March on a monthly...
The euro area’s trade surplus decreased in February compared to a year earlier. This was reported by Eurostat statistics bureau on Friday.
In February, exports fell by 5.5 percent year-on-year to 178.6 billion euros. Imports fell by 2.7 percent to 161.0 billion euros.
This resulted in a trade surplus of EUR 17.7 billion, compared with a surplus of EUR 23.4 billion a year earlier.