Business activity index drops to 52.4 in January Employment measure increases to 53.7 from 51.4 in December Price gauges rise across manufacturing, services sectors WASHINGTON, Jan 24 Reuters U.S. business activity slowed to a ninthmonth low in January amid rising price pressures, but firms reported boosting hiring, supporting the Federal Reserve39;s cautious approach to cutting […]

BERLIN, Jan 24 Reuters Business activity in Germany39;s private sector stabilised in January, marking an end to a sixmonth contraction as services growth offset a continued decline in manufacturing output, according to a survey published on Friday. The HCOB German flash composite Purchasing Managers39; Index, compiled by SP Global, rose to 50.1 in January, up […]

PARIS, Jan 24 Reuters France39;s services sector shrank further in January as businesses faced weak demand and political uncertainty, according to a closelywatched business survey by SP Global published on Friday. The HCOB Flash Services PMI Business Activity Index declined to 48.9 from 49.3 in December, below analysts39; expectations for a reading of 49.3, and […]

Jan 24 Reuters The German government has slashed its growth projection for 2025 to 0.3 from 1.1, the newspaper Handelsblatt cited government sources as saying on Friday, as the economy shows little sign of recovering from two years of contraction. The Economy Ministry declined to comment. Last year, Germany39;s economy shrank for the second consecutive year, burdened […]

Jan 24 Reuters Energy costs lifted Spanish manufacturing prices in 2024 following a contraction in the previous year, the National Statistics Institute INE said on Friday. Manufacturing prices rose 2.3 last year after a 6.3 decline in the previous year, when energy prices fell from a peak in 2022 prompted by the war in Ukraine, […]

MOSCOW, Jan 24 Reuters Russian companies surveyed by the central bank expect inflation in 2025 of 10.7, more than double the official forecast, and named labour shortages as one of the main factors stopping them expanding production, the central bank said on Friday. It held interest rates at 21 in December, surprising the market which […]

China39;s Yantian port congested, truck driver says Port steps up container handling Trump tariff threat pushes exporters to ship BEIJING, Jan 24 Reuters Exporters this week jostled to load and ship cargo from Shenzhen39;s Yantian Port, one of the world39;s largest container ports, before an eightday Lunar New Year holiday and ahead of a potential […]

Jan 24 Reuters British consumer confidence sank this month to its lowest level in over a year, marking the steepest drop between the months of December and January since 2011, according to a survey that added to signs of a slowdown in the economy. The monthly consumer confidence index published by market research firm GfK […]

Jan 24 Reuters The Bank of Japan raised interest rates on Friday to their highest since the 2008 global financial crisis and revised up its inflation forecasts, underscoring its confidence that rising wages will keep inflation stable around its 2 target. At its twoday meeting concluding on Friday, the BOJ raised its shortterm policy rate from 0.25 […]

BEIJING, Jan 24 Reuters China39;s stimulus scheme for consumer goods tradeins boosted last year39;s consumption growth by more than 1 percentage point, Vice Commerce Minister Sheng Qiuping said on Friday, as authorities steer expansion of the plan this year. Sales of cars, home appliances, electric bicycles and other products under the scheme launched last year […]