China's manufacturing activity shrank for a third straight month in February, sinking to its worst performance in three years as the economy slows and the US trade war bites, official data showed on Thursday. The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), a gauge of factory conditions, came in at 49.2 for the month, down from 49.5 in January, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Brazil's Senate-confirmed Roberto Campos Neto as central bank governor on Tuesday, after he stressed that controlling inflation and reining in public spending were critical to supporting economic growth.
Brazil’s Economy Ministry warned that the economy will slip into recession next year and official interest rates could more than double unless Congress approves measures to reduce the deficit in the country’s pension system.
HSBC warned it may have to delay some investments this year as Europe's biggest bank missed 2018 profit forecasts due to slowing growth in its two home markets of China and Britain. HSBC reported a drop in fourth-quarter revenue amid tumbling stock markets that sapped customer's confidence in investing.
British annual inflation hit a two-year low point in January, undershooting the Bank of England’s 2.0 per cent target on falling oil and other energy costs, official data showed on Wednesday.
Brazil's financial market has cut its forecast of the country's inflation rate from 3.94 to 3.87 percent for 2019 and kept the rate at 4% for 2020, the Central Bank of Brazil reported. According to the Focus survey conducted by the bank among Brazil's main financial institutions, the forecasts are within the official target of 4.25 percent, with a tolerance margin between 2.75 percent and 5.75 percent.
The Brazilian 2018-19 soybean crop will fall to 115.34 million tons, as the effects of hot and dry weather in December and January are gradually taken into account, national crop agency Conab said on Tuesday.
Britain's economy contracted in December, official figures revealed on Monday, suggesting that uncertainty over whether the country will leave the European Union with or without a deal is starting to hurt. Data from the UK's Office of Nation al Statistics, ONS, shows that gross domestic product (GDP) contracted by 0.4% in December.
The Bank of England expects growth this year to be the slowest since 2009 when the economy was in recession. It is forecasting growth of 1.2% this year, down from its previous November forecast of 1.7%. The Bank said it had seen further evidence that businesses were being cautious in the run-up to Brexit, including evidence from its own survey of firms. As expected the Bank kept interest rates on hold at 0.75%.
The UK's service sector stagnated last month, with new orders falling for the first time in two-and-a-half years, according to the IHS Markit/CIPS purchasing managers' index (PMI). The figures showed a reading of 50.1 in January lower than December's 51.2.