American economy

LONDON (Reuters) - Inflation fell to its lowest in more than two years in April, raising the prospect that the Bank of England will be able to inject more stimulus later this year to support the economy. The Office for National Statistics said consumer price inflation eased to 3.0 percent in April from 3.5 percent in March, freeing BoE Governor Mervyn King from the obligation to write an explanatory letter to finance minister George Osborne. ...  

A report from a group co-chaired by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg says the United States needs to change its immigration system in order to attract the immigrants who can contribute the most to the nation's economy, or else risk losing ground to other countries.  

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European leaders will explore ways of breathing life into their stricken economies at a summit on Wednesday, but the issue of euro-zone bonds and whether they can help alleviate two years of debt turmoil will dominate the meeting. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy of Spain, where the economy and banking system are at the frontline of the crisis, will meet newly elected French President Francois Hollande in Paris ahead of the...  

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A stalemate over how to tackle a series of fiscal deadlines at year's end would likely push the United States economy into recession in the first half of next year, the Congressional Budget Office warned on Tuesday. A wave of U.S. tax hikes and automatic spending cuts - dubbed the "fiscal cliff" - are set to take effect in January unless Congress and the White House agree on ways to delay or revise at least some of them...  

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European leaders will explore ways of breathing life into their stricken economies at a summit on Wednesday, but the issue of euro-zone bonds and whether they can help alleviate two years of debt turmoil will dominate the meeting. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy of Spain, where the economy and banking system are at the frontline of the crisis, will meet newly elected French President Francois Hollande in Paris ahead of the...  

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Brent crude slipped towards $107 on Wednesday as a potential deal between Iran and the U.N. nuclear watchdog eased fears of oil supply disruptions, while concerns over the debt crisis in the euro zone and a slowing Chinese economy weighed on demand. The U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency expects to sign a deal with Iran soon to unblock investigations into suspected work on nuclear bombs in the oil-producing country...  

PARIS (Reuters) - European Union leaders should discuss using the bloc's structural funds to shore up Greece's struggling economy when the meet later in the day to explore ways of lifting growth, French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on Wednesday. The Socialist head of government called for new measures to revive the Greek economy and help the debt-laden country avoid a "catastrophic" exit from the euro currency zone, which he said...  

LONDON (Reuters) - Investors fleeing the euro zone to seek safety in British government bonds may be taking a riskier bet than they think: The ultra-low interest rates the shrinking UK economy is paying look unlikely to last. British government bonds, nicknamed gilts after the gold leaf that used to adorn the paper certificates, have surged in price alongside U.S. and German government debt as investors have scurried away from riskier stocks...  

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil fell on Wednesday on growing hopes of a deal between Iran and the United Nations nuclear watchdog, which eased fears of oil supply disruption, while concerns over the debt crisis in the euro zone and a slowing Chinese economy weighed on demand. The U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency expects to sign a deal with Iran soon to unblock investigations suspected work on nuclear bombs in the oil-producing country. This...  

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's new environment minister described a planned post-nuclear switch to renewable energy in Europe's biggest economy as a "Herculean task" as 16 state premiers gathered to discuss the complex problem with Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday. Peter Altmaier, who took over as environment minister on Tuesday, vowed to break the deadlock between politicians, utilities, regulators and lobby groups whose clashing interests...  

ABU DHABI (Reuters) - Morocco is considering a potential dollar-denominated international bond of up to $1 billion in September or October, a senior finance and economy ministry official said on Wednesday. "It would be our first issue in dollars and give us the opportunity to diversify," said El Hassan Eddez, deputy director, treasury and external finance at the ministry's debt office. "(If issued) it would be an important size, between $500...  

BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romania's new government will stick to this year's budget plan but aim to combine growth with austerity in 2013 by cutting personal income and sales taxes should it win an election in November, the prime minister said. Tapping into a Europe-wide debate over how to maintain fiscal discipline while kick-starting a moribund economy, Victor Ponta told Reuters he wanted to gradually ease Romanians' tax burden but also stick to...  

LONDON (Reuters) - The potential fallout from a Greek exit from the euro zone and worries about the global economy weighed heavily on financial markets on Friday, snuffing out a tentative rally in stocks and setting up a mixed outlook for Wall Street's open. U.S. stocks futures pointed to gains on the broad S&P 500 index but losses on the blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average . A comment from Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister...  

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Tunisia's economy is showing signs of revival after popular protests last year pushed it into recession but the crisis in the euro zone, its most important export market, presents risks, a senior IMF official said on Friday. The International Monetary Fund has just completed its first review of Tunisia's economy since the "Arab Spring" popular revolution in January 2011 toppled veteran leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali...  

LONDON (Reuters) - Weak British gross domestic product data this week strengthens the case for more Bank of England stimulus, but this has to be weighed against above-target inflation, BoE policymaker Martin Weale said on Friday. Revised official data this week showed that Britain's economy contracted by 0.3 percent in the first quarter, a bigger fall than the earlier -0.2 percent estimate. After the first estimate was released, Weale said it...  

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Tunisia's economy is showing signs of revival after popular protests last year pushed it into recession but the crisis in the euro zone, its most important export market, presents risks, a senior IMF official said on Friday. The International Monetary Fund has just completed its first review of Tunisia's economy since the "Arab Spring" popular revolution in January 2011 toppled veteran leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali...  

As Greece creaks under its untenable debt and a shrinking economy, the possibility that it could stop using the euro is becoming increasingly likely. The effects of such a move would be as quick as they would be brutal for ordinary Greeks, who would essentially take a 50-percent pay cut just as prices soar.  

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Tunisia's economy is showing signs of revival after popular protests last year pushed it into recession but the crisis in the euro zone, its most important export market, presents risks, a senior IMF official said on Friday. The International Monetary Fund has just completed its first review of Tunisia's economy since the "Arab Spring" popular revolution in January 2011 toppled veteran leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali...  

ABIDJAN (Reuters) - A robust growth forecast for the West African Economic and Monetary Union will likely be dampened by new political turmoil in the region despite a post-war revival in Ivory Coast, a top International Monetary Fund official said on Thursday. Ivory Coast, the dominant economy in the eight-country bloc, is emerging from a decade-long political crisis that led to economic stagnation in the world's top cocoa producer. The crisis...  

LONDON (Reuters) - Weak gross domestic product data this week strengthens the case for more Bank of England stimulus, but this has to be weighed against above-target inflation, The Bank policymaker Martin Weale said on Friday. Revised official data this week showed that the economy contracted by 0.3 percent in the first quarter, a bigger fall than the earlier -0.2 percent estimate. After the first estimate was released, Weale said it...  

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Health-conscious Californians may mostly oppose smoking for its costs to public health and the economy but an aggressive tobacco industry campaign and general anti-tax sentiment may block a measure to raise taxes on smokers. Airwaves in the most populous U.S. state are filling up with advertising for and against Proposition 29, a June 5 ballot measure that would add a $1 tax to a pack of cigarettes, taking the tax to...  

GENEVA (Reuters) - European Union member countries and their close partners in north and central Europe make up 12 of the 20 nations that are most open to international trade, according to a report issued on Wednesday. The Geneva-based World Economic Forum, in the latest update of its Enabling Trade Index, which is compiled every two years, put the United States at No. 23, down from 19 in 2010. Fellow trade giant China dropped from 48th to...  

RAPID CITY, South Dakota (Reuters) - A rise in U.S. inflation over the past year suggests the Federal Reserve has little firepower left to boost employment, a top Fed official said on Wednesday. The U.S. unemployment rate, at 8.1 percent, is still high by historical standards, and many economists say employment is still well below the maximum level the economy can handle before inflationary pressures are likely to build. ...  

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. spring home-selling season got off to a strong start in April, with rising sales and prices providing evidence that a housing market recovery was gaining some traction. The housing sector has been the Achilles' heel of the economy ever since the home-price bubble burst. Data this week, however, has painted a relatively upbeat picture for the market and underscored the economy's resilience. ...  

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's main opposition faction hopes to secure support for energy, fiscal and labor market reforms by December if its candidate who is well ahead in the polls wins the presidency, a senior official in the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) said on Wednesday. Enrique Pena Nieto of the PRI is strong favorite to win the July 1 presidential election, and he has pledged to overhaul the Mexican economy in pursuit of...  

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese shares ended down 0.5 percent on Thursday as a private survey pointing to a further weakening of China's manufacturing sector sparked fresh worries over the health of the world's second-largest economy, traders said. The Shanghai Composite Index finished at 2,351 points, extending a 0.4 percent fall on Wednesday. The HSBC Flash Purchasing Managers Index, the earliest indicator of the strength of China's industrial...  

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - The rand weakened against the dollar and was expected to remain on the back foot ahead of a monetary policy decision later on Thursday, with investors cautious as they wait to hear the central bank's thinking on the outlook for growth and inflation. All 31 economists surveyed by Reuters said the central bank's Monetary Policy Committee would opt to keep rates at 5.5 percent to help a fragile economy instead of acting...  

LONDON (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar climbed to a 20-month high and safe-haven German bonds set record low yields, after data showed Europe's economic woes intensifying as business confidence is undercut by talk of a Greek exit and slow progress in tackling the debt crisis. Private-sector factory activity in China also faltered in May as demand for exports fell, in a worrying sign the impact of the euro zone crisis could be undermining the...  

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks edged up at the open on Thursday as investors brushed off tepid economic data and focused on buying beaten-down shares after a drop of more than 5 percent for the S 500 this month. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 21.00 points, or 0.17 percent, to 12,517.15. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index added 2.88 points, or 0.22 percent, to 1,321.74. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 5.25 points, or 0.18 percent, to 2...  

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Crude oil futures rose more than 1 percent on Thursday, rebounding from the previous session's slump, as talks between world powers and Iran over its nuclear program hit a snag, stirring fears of supply disruption and a new Mideast conflict. Weak economic data from China, Europe and the United States kept buyers cautious about the shaky global economy, with the talks still fluid in Baghad on Iran's nuclear goals. ...  

Asian stocks struggled for firm footing Friday as investor nerves were tested by fizzling economic growth in China, but European markets headed higher as traders kept fingers crossed that Greece would avoid financial chaos.  

THE NEWS: German business confidence dropped sharply in May, a closely-watched survey showed Thursday, as anxiety grows in Europe's largest economy over the increasing financial turmoil in the 17-country eurozone.  

Markets are swooning in Europe and the U.S. as investors become increasingly skeptical that European leaders will succeed at jump-starting the region's economy and preventing a messy exit from the euro by Greece.  

A new government study released Tuesday says that allowing Bush-era tax cuts to expire and a scheduled round of automatic spending cuts to take effect would probably throw the economy into a recession.  

Hewlett-Packard announced Wednesday that they will cut about 27,000 jobs by the end of 2014 in order to save up to $3.5 billion, so that's obviously not great news for the economy.  

New Zealand said it would contain spending to try to put the government's books back in the black within three years, while also fostering growth in the struggling economy.  

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said Thursday that even during the Great Recession, growth in the outdoor recreation industry has provided a boost to the economy.  

Just as investors were getting used to a steady diet of worrying news about the global economy, along came an encouraging report on the housing market.  

China's Cabinet says the economy is slowing further and has promised to boost growth by encouraging private investment in energy and other industries.  

THE NEWS: Britain's economy contracted in the first quarter more than first estimated, shrinking by 0.3 percent from the previous three-month period.  

A study shows German consumers remain cautiously confident in Europe's largest economy despite uncertainty in the wider 17-nation eurozone.  

Fears of a slowdown in the global economy pushed the dollar higher against most major currencies Tuesday.