Inflation rose more than expected in January, the Labor Department reported Tuesday, as a persistent rise in home prices weighed on consumers.The Consumer Price Index, a broad measure of the prices shoppers face for goods and services throughout the economy, rose 0.3% during the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. On a 12-month basis, this came to 3.1%, down from 3.4% in December.Economists surveyed by Dow Jones were expecting a monthly increase of 0.2% and annual gains of 2.9%.Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the so-called core CPI accelerated 0.4% in January and rose 3.9% from a year ago,…
Author: ricardofrancois
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – China faces a confidence deficit as its economy goes through a massive transition and concern grows about the ongoing real estate crisis, a senior banking executive said on stage at the World Government Summit in Dubai.“The biggest problem China has, to me, is a lack of confidence,” Bill Winters, CEO of emerging markets-focused Standard Chartered Bank, told CNBC's Dan Murphy on Monday during a panel discussion. “Overseas investors lack confidence in China and domestic savers lack confidence.” They lack confidence.”“But I think China is going through a big transition from the old economy to the…
Kristalina Georgieva, Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund, at a press conference at IMF headquarters on April 14, 2023.Kevin Deitch | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesDubai, United Arab Emirates – The head of the International Monetary Fund warned that the Russian economy still faces significant headwinds despite receiving a recent growth upgrade from the Washington-based institution.The Russian economy has proven surprisingly resilient amid waves of Western sanctions in the nearly two years since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.In late January, the International Monetary Fund more than doubled its forecast for the pace of economic growth in…
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD, rl), Robert Habeck (Alliance 90/Greens), Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, and Christian Lindner (FDP), Federal Minister of Finance, follow the discussion at the beginning of the budget week.Michael Kapler | Image Alliance | Getty ImagesThere was little good news for the German economy. The latest economic data has done little to change this situation.Some key data points for 2023 – factory orders, exports and industrial production – were released last week and signaled a weak end to the year that has seen questions emerge about Germany being the “sick man of Europe”.“The…
People shop at a supermarket in the Manhattan borough of New York City on January 27, 2024.Charlie Tripalo | AFP | Getty ImagesPrices paid by consumers in the market rose at a slower pace than originally reported, according to closely watched revisions released by the government on Friday.The Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said updates to the Consumer Price Index showed that the broad basket of goods and services increased by 0.2% on a monthly basis, lower than the original reading of 0.3%.While the change is modest, it helped confirm that inflation was moderating towards the end of 2023,…
Stay informed with free updatesSimply subscribe to our UK myFT Digest – delivered straight to your inbox.Over the past few years, UK policymakers have explored the idea of a mortgage with a fixed interest rate for the life of the loan, similar to the long-term products offered in countries such as the US or Denmark. Their supporters say they provide borrowers with certainty and help them pass mandatory affordability tests, especially those buying their first home. Critics say that in a period of low interest rates, there is little appeal to it.Some lenders have begun offering such products.FT Money is…
Many Chinese developers have halted or delayed construction of previously sold homes due to cash flow problems. Pictured is a property construction site in Jiangsu Province, China, on October 17, 2022.Future Publishing | Future Publishing | Getty ImagesChina's economy is faltering.Its real estate market is collapsing, deflationary pressures are spreading across the country, and the stock market has weathered a turbulent ride so far this year, with the country's CSI 300 index losing about 40% of its value from its 2021 highs.To make matters worse, January PMI figures released by China's National Bureau of Statistics showed manufacturing activity contracted for…
Mosaic collection of world currencies.Frankvandenberg | E+ | Getty ImagesEconomist Arthur Laffer Jr. warned that the world is facing a debt crisis that will extend over the next ten years, and that it will not end well, as global borrowings reached a record level of $307.4 trillion last September. Both high-income countries and emerging markets have seen their debt piles rise, which has grown by $100 trillion over the past decade, fueled in part by the high interest rate environment. “I predict the next 10 years will be the decade of debt,” Laffer, who is president of investment and wealth…
Stay informed with free updatesSimply sign up for myFT Digest of UK house prices – delivered straight to your inbox.UK house prices rose for a fourth straight month in January to their highest level since October 2022, adding to signs of stabilization in the property market as mortgage rates fall.The average UK house price rose 1.3 per cent between December and January, Halifax Mortgage Services said on Wednesday. This followed expansions in the previous three months, and was the fastest monthly rate of increase since June 2022. The rise took the average house price to £291,029, the highest level since…
D3sign | moment | Getty ImagesThe Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported Tuesday that credit card defaults rose more than 50% in 2023 as total consumer debt swelled to $17.5 trillion.Debts that went into “serious delinquency,” or 90 or more days past due, increased across multiple categories during the year, but none more than credit cards.The Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported that with total debt of $1.13 trillion, credit card debt that had moved into serious delinquency was 6.4% in the fourth quarter, up 59% from just over 4% at the end of 2022. Fed researchers said…