USA: Industrial production falls slightly less than expected
WASHINGTON – In the US, industrial production fell less than expected in October. Compared to the previous month, total manufacturing output fell by 0.3 percent, as the US Federal Reserve Bank announced on Friday in Washington. On average, economists had expected a decline of 0.4 percent.
USA: Retail sales rise surprisingly significantly
WASHINGTON – U.S. retail sales rose more than expected in October. Revenues rose by 0.4 percent compared to the previous month, as the Commerce Department announced on Friday in Washington. Economists had expected an increase of 0.3 percent on average.
ROUNDUP/Einst growth engine: Brussels lowers forecast for Germany
BRUSSELS – Germany’s economy will shrink slightly this year, according to a forecast by the EU Commission. In an estimate presented in Brussels, the authority of the EU’s largest economy predicts a decline in gross domestic product (GDP) of 0.1 percent this year. Across Europe, the Commission expects growth to be somewhat slower than recently: For 2024, the experts expect the economy of the international community to grow by 0.9 percent – after an increase of 1.0 percent expected in May. The authority continues to forecast an increase of 0.8 percent for the euro zone.
Commerzbank expects only weak growth in Germany in 2025
FRANKFURT – Commerzbank chief economist Jörg Krämer expects only very weak economic growth in Germany next year. “The slight recovery is primarily a result of the European Central Bank’s (ECB) major interest rate change,” said Krämer on Friday in Frankfurt. Commerzbank is forecasting growth of 0.2 percent for 2025 – after a contraction of 0.2 percent this year. In 2026, the gross domestic product should then increase significantly by 1.0 percent.
Ifo: Fear of the existence of companies in Germany is increasing again
MUNICH – Almost every fourteenth company in Germany currently sees its existence threatened. 7.3 percent of the companies surveyed expressed this in a survey by the Munich Ifo Institute in October. That is 0.5 percentage points more than a year earlier and 2.5 percentage points more than at the beginning of 2023. In the past crisis years, however, there were also significantly higher values - from 13.7 at the beginning of 2022 to 21.8 percent in the hot phase the Corona crisis in mid-2020, as can be seen from previous publications by the Ifo.
Japan: Economy grows slightly faster than forecast
TOKYO – Japan’s economy grew slightly faster in the third quarter than experts expected. In the three months to the end of September, gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.9 percent on an annualized basis, the Japanese government announced on Friday in Tokyo based on an initial estimate. On average, experts had only expected an increase of 0.7 percent.
China: Industrial production disappoints – retail sales better than expected
BEIJING – In China, industrial production growth surprisingly weakened somewhat in October. Investments fell slightly short of analysts’ expectations, while retail sales performed significantly better than analysts had forecast.
France: Inflation is rising slightly more than expected
PARIS – Inflation in France accelerated somewhat more in October than initially estimated. Consumer prices (HCP) calculated according to European standards rose by 1.6 percent year-on-year, as the statistics office Insee announced on Friday in Paris after a second estimate.
The British economy is only growing minimally
LONDON – Economic growth in Great Britain almost came to a standstill in the summer. In the third quarter, economic output increased by just 0.1 percent compared to the previous quarter, as the ONS statistics office announced on Friday in London according to an initial estimate. Analysts had on average expected slightly higher growth of 0.2 percent for the months July to September. After a strong start to the year, the British economy had already lost momentum in the second quarter and only grew by 0.5 percent.
ROUNDUP: Scholz wants to strengthen industry – but Chancellor without a majority
BERLIN – Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) is aiming for immediate measures by the end of the year to strengthen the German economy. “We need new impulses in the short term so that things can improve again,” said Scholz, according to a statement from the federal government after another industrial summit in the Chancellery in Berlin.
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