Hungary’s call for Ukraine ceasefire “cynical”, U.S. envoy says

BUDAPEST (Reuters) – The Hungarian government’s call for a ceasefire in neighbouring Ukraine is “cynical” given large swathes of the country are occupied by invading Russian forces, the U.S. Ambassador to Budapest David Pressman said on Wednesday. The U.S. envoy did not mention Prime Minister Viktor Orban by name, but Hungary’s leader has repeatedly called…

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German government slightly raises 2023 GDP forecast

BERLIN (Reuters) -The German government has raised its economic growth forecast for this year to 0.4% from a previously predicted 0.2%, according to its spring economic projections published on Wednesday and first reported by Reuters last week. “A gradual recovery is underway, despite a persistently difficult environment,” German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said. He expects…

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EU countries should focus on net expenditure, cut debt over 4 years -EU executive

By Jan Strupczewski BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Commission proposed on Wednesday that, under a reform of the EU’s fiscal rules, governments should ensure public debt falls by an individually negotiated amount over four years and stays on a downward path for a decade afterwards. The proposal, which sets no numerical target for how much the…

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U.S. goods trade deficit narrows sharply in March; retail inventories rise

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. trade deficit in goods narrowed sharply in March as exports surged and imports declined, which augurs well for economic growth in the first quarter. The goods trade deficit contracted 8.1% last month to $84.6 billion, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday. Exports of goods increased $4.9 billion to $172.7 billion….

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