The economic news from London is a bit encouraging as the Office for National Statistics announced that 13,700 fewer jobless-benefit claims were made in March, representing the largest reduction in claims in one month since July 2010. It is expected that the improved figures will help to boost the popularity of Prime Minister David Cameron…
Category Archives: International
France’s Economy Reports No Growth in First Quarter
Recent data from the INSEE national statistics institute has revealed that France’s economy has not advanced at all in the first quarter. The news is hardly a surprise, as France grapples with low household demand, a drop in investments, reduced exports and increasing levels of imports. Though France, one of the largest economies in the…
China’s Economy Sees Slowdown as Export Demand Falls
Contrary to previous forecasts, China’s economy faced a minor setback this past April as output data disappointed, retail sales fell and prices were eased slightly. Industrial output advanced at its slowest pace in three years, while fixed asset investment growth fell to its lowest in nearly a decade. The falter reveals that the real estate…
S&P 500 Climbs Despite Europe’s Political Developments
Though Europe’s recent elections have wreaked havoc throughout the region, investors have proven to be relatively unfazed by Sarkozy’s downfall. In fact, the S&P 500 rebounded from its losses last month. The Standard and Poors’ index increased 0.7%, while shares of the Bank of America rose 2.8% as well. Goldman Sachs also saw a 1%…
Best Countries to Do Business
International investors are not only concerned with how well their investments will do in a region, but how easy it is to conduct business there. The following list ranks the countries in which doing business is relatively easy: 1. Singapore 2. Hong Kong SAR, China 3. New Zealand 4. United States 5. Denmark
Spain’s Recession Lowers S&P 500 Index
Spain’s recession and extremely slow business activity have lowered the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index despite a positive four-month streak. Caterpillar Inc., Monsanto and Bank of America all fell a minimum of 1.7%, while Humana Inc. slid a whopping 8.1%. NYSE Euronext dropped as well, and also recorded an almost 50% fall in revenue. Microsoft’s…
British Economy Enters Recession After Back to Back Shrinking Quarters
For the first time since the 1970s Britain is facing the reality of double-dip recession. According figures supplied by London’s Office for National Statistics, the gross domestic product shrunk by 0.2 percent in the first quarter of 2012 after contracting by 0.3 percent in the last quarter of 2011. The technical definition of recession is…
Oil Prices and Economic Outlook
Investor concern regarding the ongoing debt crisis and slow economic growth is likely to increase now that oil prices have reached $103 per barrel in Asia. June delivery’s benchmark oil had fallen 13 cents to $102.98 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and the contract later fell 77 cents to $103.11. Meanwhile, Brent…
Emerging Economies Vie for More Power in the IMF
World economies are vying for position and power as they begin a plan to raise additional funds for the International Monetary Fund with the goal of limiting the damage the euro zone debt crisis will cause. Emerging economies hope to gain more say in the Washington-based think-tank/global lender and policy making body as they decide…
Debt Crisis Continues to Assail Global Economy
Financial headlines continue their repetitive, three-year trend, stating once again that debt crisis turmoil and economic confusion have lowered Asian stocks on Monday. Benchmark oil fell to $102 a barrel, and though the dollar gained momentum opposite the euro, it lost value against the yen. The Nikkei also fell 1.4% to 9,502.95 as the yen…
