US new home sales down in February

The sales of new homes in the United States was down 10 percent to 1.08 million in February, the fourth month in a row that sales have declined. Prices were down from last year as well, by 3 percent, and the supply of unsold new homes is higher than it has been in 10 […]

US industrial output up on utiliites

According to new data released on Friday by the US Federal Reserve, industrial output in the United States was up 0.7 percent in February, around the amount of increase that had been expected by analysts. The new figures also showed that capacity utilization, the amount of capacity in use by mines, utilities, and factories, […]

US retail sales decline in January

Retail sales in the United States were down in February for the first time in six months, according to new data released on Tuesday. The decline was blamed on slow automobile sales and the turn from mild winter weather to colder temperatures. A decline had been expected, but it had not been forecast […]

Bank of Japan ends loose money policy

As predicted by some analysts, The Bank of Japan decided on Thursday to end its five-year ultra-loose monetary policy, exchanging it for a policy of targeting the overnight call rate. The Bank said, in announcing its decision, that the economy has exited deflation and returned to normal with no danger of returning to deflation. […]

US trade gap up in January

The United States trade deficit grew by $3.4 billion in January from its December level, bringing it to a record level of $68.5 billion as imports grew much faster than exports. The bilateral deficit with China accounted for over a third of the growth in the overall trade deficit, growing from $16.3 billion in […]

Policy change more likely on new Japanese data

The core consumer price index in Japan gained 0.5 percent in January, just a bit more than had been expected. It was the third month in a row that the core CPI, which excludes fresh food, increased, and represented the readings highest level in eight years. The advance led some analysts to expect […]

Eurozone interest rates up

In a move that was expected by most analysts, the European Central Bank raised its main refinancing rate on Thursday by a quarter point, to 2.5 percent. It was only the second time rates have been raised in the eurozone in five years. Interest rates are expected to rise by a further quarter […]