The Lastest Macroeconomic News
24.05.2007 21:15 Solid world economic growth forecast in OECD report
In 2007 and 2008, the economy of the 31 OECD countries would experience a growth in GDP of 2.7%, according to the OECD forecast. Germany would continue to experience strong growth, with GDP set to expand by 2.9% in 2007, and there would be `soft landing` in the US after several boom years. Growth in the US economy was slowing down from 3.3% in 2006 to 2.1% in 2007. Predicted growth for 2008 was 2.5%. Thanks to recovery in Germany and Italy, the Euro zone would experience a growth rate of 2.7% in 2007. In 2008, the predicted growth of 2.3% was above potential growth of 2%.The Germany economy`s expansion rate would be 2.2% in 2008, 0.6 percentage points above potential growth rate. Growth would remain solid in Japan for 2007, up to 2.4% compared to 2.2% in 2006. Growth in China and India would be buoyant, the report predicted. However, it also warned of risks posed by imbalances in current accounts and, possibly, in financial and housing markets.
22.05.2007 22:12 The Russia`s GDP grew by 7.1% y/y in April of 2007
The Russia`s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 7.1% in April, and 7.7% in January-April (both compared to the same period of 2006), Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref said Monday at a meeting with President Vladimir Putin. Last year, the country`s gross domestic product (GDP), which measures the value of goods and services produced in an economy, grew 5.1% in the same period. Industrial output rose 7.5% in January-April, compared with 3.5% in January-April last year, Gref said thus confirming earlier reported figures. Consumer prices rose 0.3% in May 1 through May 14, Gref also said, adding that consumer prices accelerated slightly from the same period of 2006. He attributed the consumer price inflation in the first two weeks of May to a seasonal increase in the prices of meat and vegetables.
20.05.2007 13:26 Japan`s GDP grew annualized 2.4 percent in the first quarter
Japan`s economy grew at an annualized 2.4 percent in real terms in the first quarter of this year, the Cabinet Office said in a preliminary report. The growth corresponds to a 0.6 percent expansion in gross domestic product (GDP) from the previous quarter, continuing the ninth straight quarterly gain, according to the report. The increase rate was below market expectation of an annualized 2.7 percent rise or a 0.7 percent quarterly increase. Government officials and economists held that the GDP data reflected the continuing recovery of Japanese economy despite a decrease of a real 0.9 percent in capital spending in the reporting quarter. Hiroko Ota, the economic minister said that it was still "too early to say the trend has changed". For fiscal 2006, the nation`s economy expanded 1.3 percent in nominal terms, up for the fourth straight year, the report noted.
17.05.2007 22:09 U.S. April Industrial Output Rises More Than Forecast
Industrial production in the U.S. rose more than forecast last month as cold weather boosted electricity demand and manufacturers stepped up output after whittling down excess inventories. The 0.7 percent increase in production at factories, mines and utilities followed a revised 0.3 percent decrease in March that was bigger than originally reported, Federal Reserve figures showed today. Economists had forecast industrial production would rise 0.3 percent after a previously reported decline of 0.2 percent the prior month, according to the median of 81 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. Capacity utilization, which measures the proportion of plants in use, rose to 81.6 percent from 81.2 percent in March. Factory output, which accounts for about four-fifths of industrial production, rose 0.5 percent after rising 0.6 percent in March. Mining output, which includes oil drilling, declined 0.3 percent last month, after rising 0.1 percent. Utility production rose 3.5 percent after falling 7.5 percent in March.
15.05.2007 22:47 Eurozone`s GDP growth up to 0.6% q/q in the first quarter of 2007
Economic growth in countries that use the euro currency was 3,1 percent in the first quarter of 2007, slowing only slightly after a record growth spurt at the end of last year as a rise in German sales tax hurt less than expected, the European Union`s statistical agency reported. The 13-nation euro zone grew 3.3 percent in the last three months of 2006, its fastest rate since 2000, as Europeans started spending again after several years of little economic growth. Quarter-on-quarter, the area`s economy expanded 0.6 percent in the three months ending March 31. GDP of EU-27 in Q1 grew the same 0.6 percent compared to the previous quarter and 3.2 compared to the first quarter of 2006. Industrial production in the Eurozone increased by 0.4 percent in March over the previous month, the Eurostat said. Seasonally-adjusted industrial production in the 13-nation bloc sharing the same currency increased by 0.5 percent in February after a decline of 0.5 percent in January, according to newly revised figures. In the broader EU with 27 member states, industrial output increased by 0.5 percent in March, while year-on-year growth was 3.9 percent.
12.05.2007 18:14 The US trade deficit jumped to a six-month high of $63.9 billion in March
The US trade deficit jumped to a six-month high of $63.9 billion in March as rising imported oil prices more than offset stronger exports to China, the Commerce Department reported this week. The trade shortfall grew 10.4 per cent from the previous month, the sharpest monthly change in the trade picture since September 2005. In March, imports surged 4.5 per cent to $190.1 billion, their highest level since August 2006. Exports increased 1.8 per cent to 126.2 billion, the highest point since January. The March trade gap sharply exceeded analyst forecasts of $60 billion, raising fresh concerns about the gap’s drag on the US economy. It was the widest since September 2006 and rose from 57.9 billion in February. The politically sensitive US trade gap with China narrowed by 6.4 per cent to $17.2 billion, compared with 18.4 billion in February. Exports to China in March hit a new record high of $5.5 billion, while imports from the Asian powerhouse were at their lowest level since May 2006, at 22.7 billion. China, by far the leader in the US trade deficit, is under fire from US officials, industry and labor unions who accuse Beijing of keeping its currency, the yuan, artificially low to make exports unfairly competitive.
10.05.2007 23:13 Russia`s GDP grew by an estimated 7.4 percent in March of 2007
Russia`s economic growth slowed slightly in March but still set a blistering pace led by a construction sector that benefited from unseasonably mild weather. Gross domestic product (GDP) grew by an estimated 7.4 percent in March, year-on-year, compared to a revised February estimate of 7.9 percent, the Economy Ministry said in its monthly economic report. The ministry had earlier estimated February GDP growth at 8.3 percent and gave no reason for downward revision. The Ministry also said GDP grew by 7.9 percent in the first quarter. Manufacturing and construction were the drivers of growth in the first quarter of 2007. Industrial output grew by 8.4 percent in Jan-March. The construction industry, which showed record growth rates due to a warm winter that allowed builders to carry on working, increased output by 22.7 percent compared with 1.5 percent in the same period last year. Capital investment grew by 20.1 percent in the first quarter of 2007, compared with 5.7 percent in the same period of last year. Retail trade grew by 13.6 percent compared with 11.1 a year ago.
04.05.2007 12:08 China`s GDP rises 11.1 percent in first quarter of 2007
The Chinese economy rose 11.1 percent in the first quarter of 2007, the Chinese National Statistics Office said, with a high level official admitting the possibility of economic overheating. According to analysts, rapid economic growth was due to increased internal consumption and investment in fixed assets alongside the country`s trade surplus, which affects the effectiveness of measures put in place by Beijing to prevent the economy overheating. "If rapid growth continues for a longer period of time, there is the risk that we will move from rapid growth to overheating", said Li Xiaochao, spokesman for the National Statistics Office. The 11.1 percent growth rate is the highest since the third quarter of 2006, in which China`s GDP grew 11.5 percent, leading analysts to fear that measures implemented by the Chinese government to cool growth had so far had a limited impact. China, which is the world`s fourth-largest, grew 10.7 percent last year, with growth in the fourth quarter of 10.4 percent. At the beginning of this year, the Chinese government set a limit of 8 percent for growth in 2007, which, similarly to previous limits set for GDP growth, is likely to be exceeded.
03.05.2007 13:15 Eurozone Manufacturing Activity Stable In April of 2007
Manufacturing activity in the 13 nations that share the euro held steady in April although the European currency`s recent strength took its toll on exports, according to a widely watched survey on May 2. The Eurozone`s seasonally adjusted purchasing managers` index (PMI), compiled by NTC Research, was flat in April at 55.4 points compared to March, in line with private economists` expectations for 55.5 points. A reading above 50 indicates that the manufacturing sector is generally expanding, while a reading below 50 suggests that it is generally contracting. "Despite the strong euro, the manufacturing sector is growing at a steady clip in the eurozone," said Bank of America economist Holger Schmieding. "Judging by the monthly survey of purchasing managers, an improved outlook for employment at home is offsetting a decline in export orders," he added.
30.04.2007 20:09 Eurozone April Confidence Stays Close to Six-Year High
European business and consumer confidence stayed close to a six-year high this month, as resurgent exports and corporate investment help the euro-area economy overcome increased interest rates and a U.S. slowdown. An index of sentiment among executives and consumers in the euro region slipped to 111.0 from a revised 111.1 in March, the European Commission in Brussels said. Economists had expected the April confidence index to rise to 111.7 from a previously reported 111.2 in March, according to the median of 27 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. Business confidence in Germany, Europe`s biggest economy, unexpectedly rose this month to the second-highest level on record, the Ifo institute said April 25. Euro-area industrial confidence increased in April to the highest since the data were first collated in 1990, today`s report showed. Also the commission estimates the euro area grew 0.6 percent in the first quarter from the prior three months, twice the rate of expansion in the U.S.