China's perceived buying conditions likely declined on a broad basis

Oct 28, 2015 05:28 am UTC| Commentary Economy

In China, more specific questions on specific spending plans showed large declines in plans for shopping (-7.9%) entertainment spending (-6.7%) dining out (-5.7% with a smaller 2.9% decline for western style fast food)....

US labor market gives hollow feeling to recovery

Oct 28, 2015 04:39 am UTC| Commentary Economy

Deep dissatisfaction with US labor market has been a hallmark of the current US economic recovery, as well as the previous ones since the 1990s. Despite significant improvement on a wide variety of other labor market...

Strong GBP and Europe's week growth impacts UK's exports

Oct 28, 2015 04:34 am UTC| Commentary Economy

UKs private consumption is stimulated by a combination of low interest rates, very high consumer confidence, increasing house prices, high employment and positive real wage growth for the first time since 2009. Going...

Polarization may help explain U.S. soft wages

Oct 28, 2015 04:28 am UTC| Commentary Economy

In U.S., polarization may be breaking the usual links between standard measures of labor market capacity and inflation. A growing puzzle for markets and policymakers has been the apparent decline of the non-accelerating...

Private sector credit cycle to turn less supportive in Brazil

Oct 27, 2015 21:57 pm UTC| Commentary Economy

For roughly ten years, a relatively buoyant economic backdrop, resumption of financial stability (after the turmoil associated with the 2002 election) and lenient financial policies (at least in the past half-decade)...

Brazil private sector’s external debt has increased in the past half decade

Oct 27, 2015 20:43 pm UTC| Commentary Economy

The Brazilian private sector has increased its international debt to a greater degree than the sovereign, and it is not inconceivable that in a stress scenario, some of this debt could become a public-sector liability....

Slower activity abroad to weigh on US trade and inventories

Oct 26, 2015 07:35 am UTC| Commentary Economy

Along with US private consumption, growth in business investment underpinned import growth of 4.5% during the quarter. Exports, however, have not kept pace as activity abroad has softened since mid-year and the effects...