JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South African manufacturing activity contracted for the fourth consecutive month in May, with a particularly steep decline in expected business conditions, a survey showed on Thursday. The seasonally-adjusted Absa Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) edged down to 49.2 in May from 49.8 in April, moving further below the 50-point mark that separates expansion…
By Ira Dugal MUMBAI (Reuters) – A surge in investments that offset sluggish consumption to boost India’s growth in 2022-23 is expected to power the economy in the current financial year as the government pushes ahead with massive capital expenditure plans, economists said. This, in turn, could reflect across sectors like construction, which have a…
LONDON (Reuters) – The downturn in euro zone manufacturing activity deepened in May as demand slumped despite factories cutting prices for the first time since September 2020, according to a survey which painted a gloomy outlook. Compiled by S&P Global, Thursday’s HCOB final manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to 44.8 from April’s 45.8, just…
CHISINAU (Reuters) – President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said during a trip to Moldova on Thursday that Ukraine was ready to be in the NATO military alliance, and that Kyiv was waiting for the bloc to be ready to admit his country. He also reiterated Ukraine’s desire to join the European Union after arriving in Moldova, which…
BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany’s manufacturing sector contracted at the fastest rate in three years in May and output fell for the first time in four months, a survey showed on Thursday. The HCOB final Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for manufacturing, which accounts for about a fifth of Germany’s economy, fell to 43.2 from 44.5 in…
By Jason Xue and Tom Westbrook SHANGHAI/SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Shares in some Chinese temple operators and lottery sellers surged for a second day on Thursday amid a weak post-COVID recovery, as despondent young people rush to pray or gamble amid greater economic uncertainty. Data showed Chinese temple visits more than quadrupled this year compared with…
By David Morgan, Richard Cowan and Moira Warburton WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A divided U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to suspend the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling on Wednesday, with majority support from both Democrats and Republicans to overcome opposition led by hardline conservatives and avoid a catastrophic default. The Republican-controlled House voted 314-117 to…
(Refiles to correct spelling of ‘dynamic’ in headline) By Farah Master HONG KONG (Reuters) – China’s Henan province has unveiled a 100-day plan to “dynamically clear” youth unemployment as concern grows over record levels of joblessness among young adults, with millions more students due to graduate this year. The plan, to take place in colleges…
By Karin Strohecker and Vincent Flasseur LONDON (Reuters) – The pace of interest rate hikes across major central banks showed little sign of slowing in May but the scale of the tightening tapered off, with growth woes and “sticky” inflation data prompting policymakers to tread more cautiously. All six of the central banks overseeing one…
By Mike Dolan LONDON (Reuters) – Even if the U.S. dollar’s singular dominance as global currency of choice is in fact ebbing, it may not automatically lead to a weaker dollar exchange rate – and could periodically mean the opposite. A Federal Reserve less worried about the overspill of its monetary policies to the rest…
