SANTIAGO, May 6 Reuters Chile39;s consumer prices rose 1.4 in April boosted by rising costs in food and nonalcoholic beverages, the government39;s statistics agency said on Friday. The figure, which was also driven by rising leisure and education prices, was higher than the 1.0 rise expected in a Reuters poll of economists, but came in […]

WASHINGTON, May 5 Reuters U.S. worker productivity fell at its steepest pace since 1947 in the first quarter, while growth in unit labor costs accelerated, indicating that rising wage pressures will continue contributing to keeping inflation elevated for a while. Nonfarm productivity, which measures hourly output per worker, plunged at a 7.5 annualized rate last […]

ROME, May 6 Reuters  World food prices eased slightly in April after hitting a record high in March, but global food security remained a concern because of the difficult market conditions, U.N. food agency said on Friday. The Food and Agriculture Organization39;s FAO food price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 158.5 […]

LONDON, May 6 Reuters Britain39;s construction sector in April had its slowest month since January, hit by rising costs and higher interest rates to finance new projects, a survey published on Friday showed. The SP GlobalCIPS construction Purchasing Managers39; Index PMI slipped to 58.2 from 59.1 in March, which was its jointhighest reading since June […]

Weekly jobless claims increase 19,000 to 200,000 Continuing claims fall 19,000 to 1.384 million Productivity plunges at 7.5 rate in first quarter WASHINGTON, May 5 Reuters New claims for U.S. unemployment benefits increased to a more than twomonth high last week, but remained at a level consistent with tightening labor market conditions and further wage […]

BOGOTA, May 5 Reuters Colombia swapped internal public debt worth 2.6 trillion pesos 641 million in April, the second such operation this year and part of an effort to reduce amortizations and improve the country39;s debt profile, its finance ministry said on Thursday. In the latest operation, the ministry traded TES securities coming due in […]

May 5 Reuters The Chinese and Russian central banks will discuss the use and promotion of their respective national payment systems in both countries, Beijing39;s envoy to Moscow told the TASS news agency in an interview published on Thursday. Regarding the promotion and use of the Mir and China UnionPay national payment systems in both […]

WASHINGTON, May 4 Reuters U.S. services industry growth unexpectedly slowed in April, with employment contracting for the second time this year, while a measure of input prices raced to a record high. The Institute for Supply Management said on Wednesday its nonmanufacturing activity index fell to a reading of 57.1 last month from 58.3 in […]

Energy, food drive the rise in prices Interest rate cuts, lira slide triggered inflation leap Inflation last this high before Erdogan came to power Price rises a growing headache for Erdogan ahead of elections ISTANBUL, May 5 Reuters Turkey39;s annual inflation jumped to a twodecade high of 69.97 in April, according to data on Thursday, […]

ZURICH, May 4 Reuters The Swiss government is setting up a gas sector crisis intervention group and a monitoring system for early detection of an impending electricity shortage, it said on Wednesday, as it prepares for the possibility of severe power shortages. The Swiss government began drawing up plans in April for a potential gas […]