DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Premarket stocks: Apple is giving banks a run for their money
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Apple’s savings account is managed through Apple products and users must have Apple’s credit card, simply called Apple Card, to qualify for one. “It’s very much a loyalty play because it’s a multi-level process: To get the Apple credit card you need the phone, and to get the savings account you need the credit card. The Apple savings account through Goldman is also insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. And Apple’s savings account is hardly the best out there, either. UFB Direct offers a savings account with more than a 5% annual percentage yield.

☆ China's economy is on the rebound — and that's good news for 3 of the Club's consumer stocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Paulina Likos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Estee Lauder (EL), Starbucks (SBUX) and Wynn Resorts (WYNN) are the Club's consumer discretionary stocks with the greatest exposure to the Chinese market. Shares of Estee Lauder, Starbucks and Wynn — up roughly 3.5%, 9.2% and 37.5% year-to-date, respectively — edged up on the news Tuesday. For Estee Lauder, a leader in luxury skin care, makeup and fragrances, China accounts for about a third of total revenue. The Club's take China's latest economic data highlights our investment case for our three big consumer companies doing business in the country. However, we're pleased to see a robust rebound in consumer activity in the world's second largest economy, signifying a positive growth outlook for Estee Lauder, Starbucks and Wynn Resorts.

☆ China GDP: Economy shakes off Covid legacy to grow 4.5% in Q1
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

But private investment barely budged and youth unemployment surged to the second highest level on record, indicating the country’s private sector employers are still wary about longer term prospects. Retail sales jumped 10.6% in March from a year earlier, the highest level of growth since June 2021. The country’s GDP will grow 5.2% this year and 5.1% in 2024, it predicted. If adjustments are made to account for the impact of delayed economic activity, GDP growth in the first quarter could have been just 2.6%, he said. For example, private investment was extremely weak.

GDP growth last year slumped to one of its worst in nearly half a century due to COVID restrictions. "The strong export growth in March also likely helped to boost GDP growth in Q1." China's rebound has so far remained uneven as its investment-fuelled growth of the past to one now reliant on consumption faces challenges. Consumption, services and infrastructure spending have perked up but factory output has lagged amid weak global growth, while slowing prices and surging bank savings are raising doubts about demand. The government has set a modest GDP growth target of around 5% for this year, after badly missing the 2022 goal.

☆ Ohio GOP Rep. Jim Jordan holds Manhattan hearing to blast DA's record on crime despite 73% higher murder rate at home
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Rep. Jim Jordan held a Manhattan hearing criticizing its 'soft-on-real-crime' DA. The House Judiciary Committee hearing was met with pushback about crime in red states like Jordan's. NYPD stats show that the first three months of 2023 have seen a decline in Manhattan crime compared with the first three months of last year. The chairman is doing the bidding of Donald Trump," Nadler said. Bragg responded by suing Jordan and the House Judiciary Committee; his lawsuit seeks to block the subpoena and to stop Jordan's investigation.

☆ China March new home prices rise at fastest pace in 21 months
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Summary March new home prices +0.5% m/m vs +0.3% m/m in FebBEIJING, April 15 (Reuters) - China's new home prices rose in March at the fastest pace in 21 months, official data showed on Saturday, as continued government policy support helped prop up demand amid a broader push for an economic recovery. New home prices in March edged up 0.5% month-on-month after a 0.3% rise in February, marking the fastest pace since June 2021 and the third consecutive monthly rise, according to Reuters calculations based on National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data. Prices fell 0.8% year-on-year, down on an annual basis for the 11th straight month. Household loans, mostly mortgages, jumped to 1.24 trillion yuan ($180.52 billion) in March from 208.1 billion yuan in February, with medium- to long-term household loans rising to 634.8 billion yuan from 86.3 billion yuan in February, according to Reuters' calculations based on central bank data. China will release property sales and investment data for March on Tuesday, along with economic activity data and first quarter gross domestic product (GDP).

☆ Australia's robust March employment suggests RBA may hike again
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Stella Qiu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Steven Saphore/File PhotoSummary Strong employment, jobless near 50-year lows keep RBA on alertFull-time employment surges, positive for household incomeData suggests strong Q1 inflation, see RBA hike again -analystSYDNEY, April 13 (Reuters) - Australia employment blew past expectations for a second month in March while the jobless rate held near 50-year lows, an unambiguously strong report that suggests the central bank's tightening campaign may not be over yet. Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed on Thursday net employment rose 53,000 in March from February, when they rebounded by a steep but slightly downwardly revised 63,600. The jobless rate stayed at 3.5%, when analysts had looked for a nudge up to 3.6%. Full-time employment surged by 72,200, after a hefty increase of 74,900 the previous month, an encouraging sign for household income. Reporting by Stella Qiu and Wayne Cole; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Shri NavaratnamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China is home to one of the world's biggest luxury markets, and it's starting to make a comeback after the country's 3-year COVID lockdowns
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Nidhi Pandurangi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

China is an important luxury market. Bain expects these consumers will account for 46% of the global luxury market by 2025. However, Wu's comments echoed Bain's positive outlook for China's luxury market. China's consumer price index, or CPI — the monthly change in prices paid by consumers — showed bleak data for March. It could be the reason Bank of America's Wu told CNBC that strong recovery across China's consumer sector has not yet been seen.

☆ China's consumer, factory prices skid as demand falters
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Reuters Staff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Tingshu WangIn contrast to surging prices globally, China’s retail and producer inflation has remained anaemic as the consumer and industrial sectors struggle to recover from their pandemic hit. Analysts now think consumer inflation could fall short of Beijing’s official targets this year. On a month-on-month basis, food prices fell 1.4%. GRAPHIC: China's inflation skids, hereFALLING SHORTThe government has set a target for average consumer prices in 2023 to be about 3%. “We think consumer price inflation will rebound in the coming months as the labour market tightens again and will peak at 2.3% in early 2024,” said Zichun Huang, China economist at Capital Economics.

☆ China's consumer inflation hits 18-month low amid uneven recovery
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

China's consumer inflation in March hit the slowest pace since September 2021, weighed by sluggish food prices, official data showed on Tuesday, suggesting demand weakness persists amid an uneven economic recovery. The consumer price index (CPI) for the month rose 0.7% year-on-year, compared with the 1.0% gain seen in February, said the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Food price inflation slowed to 2.4% year-on-year from 2.6% in the previous month. On a month-on-month basis, food prices fell 1.4%. That pushed the CPI down 0.3% from a month earlier after a 0.5% fall in February, dashing expectations of no change.

☆ China is facing a population crisis but some women continue to say 'no' to having babies
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

D3sign | Moment | Getty ImagesChina is facing a population crisis in part due to more women choosing to focus on their careers and personal goals, instead of starting a family. Helping women strike the balanceTrip.com is one Chinese company that takes pride in trying to encourage more women to have children. Women in China who want to freeze their eggs must be married, according to Chinese regulations. However, some women in China want children but may not be ready to get married, said Mu the assistant professor from NUH. Shannon a single motherAdditionally, women who divorce after having children face social stigma and struggle to balance their career while raising a child alone.

☆ Australian PM says inflation numbers 'pleasing' amid cost of living pressures
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, April 1 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Saturday he was pleased to see inflation retreating in Australia, but cautioned that cost of living pressures remained nationwide. "It was pleasing the results, the trend going in the right direction this week with the figures but we know cost of living pressures are there," Albanese told reporters in Melbourne. Inflation remained "a real issue" and "a global phenomenon", he said, campaigning alongside the Labor Party's candidate for the federal seat of Aston, in Victoria state, where a by-election was taking place. Amid persistent inflation, cost of living has become a key political issue, and was a focus of last weekend's election in New South Wales, the country's most populous state. It was won by Albanese's state Labor counterpart Chris Minns who campaigned in part on providing cost of living relief.

LONDON, March 31 (Reuters) - China’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports fell sharply in 2022 because of the disruption caused by lockdowns to control the coronavirus epidemic and the massive exit wave of infections when they were lifted. But the import rebound could be smaller than some analysts anticipate because domestic gas production is rising strongly and the country has mostly completed its transition to natural gas for urban residents. Both LNG and pipeline imports remained subdued in the first two months of this year with any rebound delayed until later in 2023. China’s LNG purchasers have proved price-sensitive and will likely wait for prices to decline before increasing imports and refilling storage. PIPELINES NOT LNGThe shift from LPG and especially gasworks gas has turbocharged consumption of natural gas over the last decade.

☆ Slower China factory activity growth challenges economic recovery prospects
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

China's economic activity picked up in the first two months of 2023 as consumption and infrastructure investment drove a recovery after the end of COVID-19 disruptions and retail sales swung back to growth. "However, amid rapidly worsening geopolitical tensions and financial concerns outside of China, this may not last long," they added in a note. While business and consumer sentiment is starting to pick up, the manufacturing sector remains under pressure amid sluggish global demand and stubbornly high costs. Any fallout from a recent crisis of confidence in the global banking sector could also affect demand for China's goods, adding to pressure on manufacturers. Factory activity was hit by slowing growth in production and customer demand, with the output and new orders sub-indexes showing declines from February's levels.

☆ China manufacturing activity expands at slower pace in March
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Summary Manufacturing PMI 51.9 in March vs 52.6 in FebBEIJING, March 31(Reuters) - China's manufacturing activity expanded at slower pace in March, official data showed on Friday, suggesting hopes of a strong post-COVID economic recovery are faltering amid weaker global demand and a continued property market downturn. The February figure had grown at the fastest pace in more than a decade. China's economic activity picked up in the first two months of 2023 as consumption and infrastructure investment drove a recovery after the end of COVID-19 disruptions and retail sales swung back to growth. While business and consumer sentiment is starting to pick up, the manufacturing sector remains under pressure to maintain growth momentum amid sluggish global demand and stubbornly high costs. Any fallout from a recent crisis of confidence in the global banking sector could also affect demand for China's goods, adding to pressure on manufacturers.

☆ China's non-manufacturing PMI jumps to decade high as economic recovery gets back on track
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Hong Kong CNN —A key index measuring the strength of China’s massive services sector jumped to its highest level in more than a decade, as the country’s economic recovery gained traction. The official non-manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) soared to 58.2 in March from 56.3 in February, marking the best level since 2011, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). “The official PMIs suggest that China’s rapid reopening recovery remained robust this month,” Capital Economics analysts wrote on Friday. In a keynote speech, the newly minted premier told more than a thousand international business and political leaders that China’s economic growth was “strong,” with March’s performance even better than January and February’s. Top economic officials have also been trying to reassure both foreign business and the domestic private sector.

☆ Australian job vacancies fall 1.5% in Feb quarter, still high historically
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SYDNEY, March 30 (Reuters) - Job vacancies in Australia eased in the three months to February, the third straight quarter of decline, but still far above pre-pandemic levels in a sign of a still tight labour market. Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) out on Thursday showed vacancies in the February quarter fell 1.5%, from the previous quarter, to 438,500. "There is still a very high demand for labour from employers across Australia and across all industries," said Bjorn Jarvis, ABS head of labour statistics. Thursday's data showed vacancies in the private sector dipped 1.5% in the February, while the public sector saw a drop of 1.4%. The number of vacancies was highest in public administration followed by the accommodation and food sector, health care and education.

☆ Australia's inflation slows to 8-month low in Feb, adding to rate pause case
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Stella Qiu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, March 29 (Reuters) - Australian inflation slowed to an eight-month low in February, thanks in part to a sharp retreat in holiday travel and accommodation, adding to the case for a pause in interest rate hikes next month. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday showed its monthly consumer price index (CPI) rose 6.8% in the year to February, the slowest since June last year. Prices excluding volatile fruit, vegetables and fuel rose 6.9% in the year to February, down from 7.5% in January. While many analysts still think the RBA will hike at least once more, some believe it might pause in April before moving in May following inflation data for the first quarter. Reporting by Wayne Cole; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Sam HolmesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Australia retail sales level off in Feb as shoppers rein in spending
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Stella Qiu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SYDNEY, March 28 (Reuters) - Australian retail sales levelled off in February after wild swings around the year-end holidays, suggesting consumers are reining in spending in the face of higher living costs and rising interest rates. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Tuesday showed retail sales rose just 0.2% in February, compared to a revised 1.8% rise in January. Sales of A$35.14 billion ($23.48 billion) were 6.4% higher than a year earlier. The figure beat median forecasts of a 0.1% rise, pushing the local dollar higher to $0.6674 , up 0.4% for the day. Australia employment rebounded strongly in February, the jobless rate eased back to near 50-year lows, and business conditions remained resilient.

☆ Australia retail sales growth slows to 0.2% in February
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SYDNEY, March 28 (Reuters) - Australian retail sales eked out a meagre gain in February after wild swings around year-end holidays, indicating shoppers are reining in spending in the face of higher costs of living and rising interest rates. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Tuesday showed retail sales rose 0.2% in February from January, when they picked up a revised 1.8%. Sales of A$35.14 billion ($23.42 billion) were 6.4% higher than a year earlier. The result was just a touch above median forecasts of a rise of 0.1%. ($1 = 1.5004 Australian dollars)Reporting by Stella Qiu; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China's industrial profits slump deepens on soft demand, high costs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The slump in Chinese industrial firms' profits deepened in the first two months of 2023, weighed by lacklustre demand and stubbornly high costs as the world's second-largest economy struggled to fully shake the long-term effects of Covid. NBS statistician Sun Xiao attributed the decline to still soft demand despite an uptick in industrial output, according to a statement on the bureau's website. "Currently, international commodity prices remain at high levels and overseas demand is still on a downtrend," Zhou wrote. "Industrial and manufacturing departments still need to offer policy support, alleviating fiscal, cost and financing pressures and stabilizing firm confidence." Foreign firms posted a 35.7% decline in profits, while private-sector firms saw their profits down 19.9%, according to a breakdown of the 887.21 billion yuan ($128.92 billion) profits.

☆ China's industrial profits slump in Jan-Feb as COVID pain lingers
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Summary China Jan-Feb industrial profits -22.9% y/y vs -4.0% for 2022BEIJING, March 27 (Reuters) - Profits at industrial firms in China declined 22.9% in the first two months of 2023 from the year before, official data showed on Monday, as the factory sector struggles to claw its way out of the slump caused by COVID-related disruptions. The contraction followed a 4.0% fall in industrial profits for the whole of 2022, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed, pointing to a downbeat start to the year for factories at large. Industrial profit numbers cover firms with annual revenues of at least 20 million yuan ($2.91 million) from their main operations. Factory output growth accelerated to 2.4% in January-February, data showed earlier this month. China's central bank this month unexpectedly cut the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves for the first time this year to help support the economic recovery.

SYDNEY, March 20 (Reuters) - China still added more crude oil to inventories in the first two months of the year, despite lower imports and higher refinery processing rates. About 270,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude was added to commercial or strategic inventories over January and February, according to calculations based on official data. This was down from the 1.19 million bpd in December and the 740,000 bpd for 2022 as a whole. The total volume of crude available from imports and domestic production in the first two months of the year was 14.63 million bpd, consisting of imports of 10.4 million bpd and local output of 4.23 million bpd. This equates to about 1.72 million bpd of exports, using the BP conversion factor of 8 barrels of product per tonne.

☆ China launches recruitment drive for college graduates
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The recruitment drive, hosted by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, will last from Sunday to May 26, Xinhua said. The government aims to keep survey-based jobless rate of around 5.5% this year. During the first 10 days of the recruitment drive, 19 offline job fairs, eight cross-region job fairs and job fairs featuring sectors such as manufacturing, medicine and health, Internet and electricity and new energy will be hosted, Xinhua said. China's survey-based jobless rate was 5.6% in February, but for 16-24 years old it was 18.1%, National Bureau of Statistics data showed. A rise in the jobless rate in February was due to seasonal factors, the bureau said.

☆ Australia employment rebounds in Feb, jobless drops back to near 50-yr lows
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Stella Qiu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, March 16 (Reuters) - Australia employment rebounded strongly in February after two months of declines, while the jobless rate fell back to near 50-year lows, suggesting the country's labour market remained tight amid a slew of interest rate hikes by the central bank. Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed on Thursday that net employment rose 64,600 in February from January, when they fell a revised 10,900. The jobless rate dropped to 3.5%, from 3.7%, when analysts had looked for a dip to 3.6%, while hours worked jumped by 3.9% in another signal of resilience. Full-time employment soared by 74,900 jobs in February, compared with a drop of 43,300 the previous month. That prompted investors to price out any chance of another rate hike from the Reserve Bank of Australia.

Search resuls for: "of Statistics"

25 mentions found