Malaysia’s industrial production unexpectedly rose in June as manufacturers increased output, a gain that may ease as faltering growth in advanced economies hurts global demand. Production at factories, utilities and mines climbed 1% from a year earlier after declining a revised 5.6% in May. (Bloomberg)
Australia: Consumer sentiment falls
Australian consumer confidence deteriorated for a fourth straight month to the lowest level in more than 2 years. The sentiment index dropped 3.5% in August to 89.6 from a month earlier, the lowest since May 2009 and marking the longest sustained declined since early 2008. (Bloomberg)
India: Car sales fell in July from a year earlier, the first monthly decline since January 2009, after higher interest rates and production changes at Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. damped deliveries. Automakers sold 133,747 cars in the country last month, a 16% YoY drop, according to data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers in New Delhi. The decline in July was the biggest since November 2008. (Source: Bloomberg)
Singapore: Cuts export growth forecast as global risks rise. Singapore cut its forecast for export growth this year as a struggling U.S. economy and Europe's debt crisis threaten overseas sales, valued at more than half of the island's gross domestic product. Non-oil domestic exports will probably rise 6% to 7% in 2011, less than a previous forecast for shipments to grow 8% to 10%, the trade promotion agency said in a statement. Gross domestic product fell an annualized 6.5% in the second quarter from the previous three months, compared with a preliminary estimate of 7.8%, the trade ministry said separately.
Philippines: Exports fell in June for a second straight month, recording the biggest drop since 2009 as sales of electronics products slumped. Shipments abroad declined 10.2% YoY to USD4.1b after falling 3.1% YoY in May, the National Statistics Office said in Manila. (Source: Bloomberg)
China: Trade surplus rise to USD31.5bn on record exports
China’s trade surplus surged to USD31.5bn, the highest level in more than 2 years, as exports rose to a record. Outbound shipments climbed 20.4% from a year earlier in July while imports also jumped 22.9%. (Bloomberg)
Europe: French credit in crosshairs as Germany enjoys lone status as haven
France’s borrowing costs are rising as Europe’s debt crisis makes investors wary of lending to any nation other than Germany. Investors currently demand about 90bps of extra yield to buy 10-year French debt rather than German bunds, even though both carry AAA grades from the major rating companies. That spread is almost triple the 2010 average of 33, and compares with 17 in the second half of the previous decade. The cost of insuring French debt rose to a record today. Credit default swaps on France trade at 163bps, double the rate to protect German securities. (Bloomberg)
France: Industrial output fell more than estimated in June on lower production of transport materials and electronic goods. Output from factories, mines and utilities decreased 1.6% MoM from May, when it rose a revised 1.9% MoM, national statistics office Insee said. (Source: Bloomberg)
Germany: Inflation accelerated in July on rising energy costs
Inflation in Germany quickened in July after energy costs increased. The inflation rate rose to 2.6% from 2.4% in June. From the previous month, prices climbed 0.5%. (Bloomberg)
UK: Headwinds intensifying as growth outlook cut
Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said headwinds buffeting the UK economy are intensifying “by the day” and officials can expand stimulus if the outlook for growth deteriorates further. While there’s “no reason” for the Monetary Policy Committee to add stimulus for now, “in the committee’s view, the weakness in underlying activity is likely to be somewhat more persistent than previously expected,” King said. (Bloomberg)
US: Mortgage applications climbed last week on refinancing
Mortgage applications in the US surged last week as a drop in borrowing costs led to the biggest gain in refinancing in more than 2 years. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s index increased 22% in the period ended 5 Aug from the prior week while its refinancing measure jumped 30%, the biggest gain since March 2009, as the purchase gauge declined 0.9%. (Bloomberg)
US: Job openings increased in June for a second month
Job openings in US increased in June for the second month, while hiring decelerated, a sign businesses lack the confidence to take on needed staff. The number of positions waiting to be filled rose by 75,000 to 3.1m as hiring fell by 78,000 to 4.1m. (Bloomberg)
US: Bernanke signals Fed dissenters won’t impede more stimulus
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke signaled he may expand record monetary stimulus over the most opposition of his tenure to revive the faltering recovery and reduce unemployment stuck around 9%. The central bank said yesterday that officials “discusses the range of policy tools” to strengthen growth and are “prepared to employ these tools as appropriate” while pledging to keep the benchmark interest rate near zero until at least mid-2013. (Bloomberg)
US stocks slump as Dow Falls to lowest level since September
US stocks tumbled, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average to the lowest level since September, as banks slumped on concern that Europe will fail to contain its debt crisis and that the economy is faltering. All 10 groups in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell at least 2%. Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc. dropped more than 10%, pacing losses in financial shares, as the costs to protect the government debt of Greece, Italy, Spain and France rose. Walt Disney Co., the largest theme-park company, tumbled 9.1% on concerns that the slowing economy and consumer confidence may hurt its businesses. (Bloomberg)
U.S: Wholesale inventories rose less than forecast in June as distributors kept stockpiles in line with sales. The 0.6% MoM increase in inventories followed a revised 1.7% MoM rise in May. Sales also rose 0.6% MoM in June after dropping the previous month. (Source: Bloomberg)
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