20130103 1110 Global Economy Related News.

Indonesia: Inflation slowed for a second month in December
Indonesia’s inflation slowed for a second month in December, supporting the central bank’s decision to hold off interest rate increases as exports slump. Consumer prices climbed 4.3% from a year earlier last month, after a previously reported 4.32% gain in November, the statistics bureau said. The median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey of 15 economists was 4.2%. (Bloomberg)

Thailand: Inflation quickens to 13-month high on food prices
Thailand’s inflation accelerated to a 13-month high in December, exceeding economists’ estimates, as subsidies failed to counter rising prices of food and fuel. An index of consumer prices rose 3.63% last month from a year earlier, the Ministry of Commerce said, compared with a 2.74% increase reported earlier for November. The median estimate of 12 economists in a Bloomberg News survey was 3.22%. (Bloomberg)

UK: Manufacturing revives as Euro factories struggle
UK manufacturing unexpectedly expanded at the fastest pace in 15 months in December as domestic demand improved, indicating some strength in the economy at the end of 2012. A gauge of factory activity rose to 51.4 from a revised 49.2 in November, Markit Economics and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply said. The median forecast of 29 economists in a Bloomberg News survey was for a reading of 49.1, unchanged from November’s initially reported level. (Bloomberg)

EU: December manufacturing shrinks more than estimated
Euro area manufacturing output contracted more than initially estimated in December, adding to signs a recession in the currency bloc may extend into this year as leaders struggle to tackle the sovereign debt crisis. A gauge of manufacturing in the 17-nation euro area fell to 46.1 from 46.2 in November, London-based Markit Economics said. That’s below an initial estimate of 46.3 on 14 Dec. A reading below 50 indicates a contraction. The gauge has been below 50 for 17 months. (Bloomberg)

US: Outlook for 2013 improves as manufacturing climbs
Manufacturing picked up in December, reflecting growth in orders, employment and exports that indicate the US expansion will be sustained in 2013 following the budget deal. The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index climbed to 50.7 from a three-year low of 49.5 in November, the Tempe, Arizona-based group reported. 50 is the dividing line between expansion and contraction. (Bloomberg)

US stock indexes start 2013 with big rally
US stocks surged on Wednesday, with the Dow industrials notching their largest first-session-of-the-year-point rise ever, as Wall Street welcomed an 11th-hour deal to avoid steep spending cuts and tax increases and pondered deficit moves still ahead. The measure approved by the House of Representatives just after 11pm on Tuesday undid tax hikes for all but one to two percent of US households, with the bipartisan vote ending a lengthy standoff over how to avoid more than USD600bn in tax hikes and spending cuts viewed as likely to push the economy back into a recession. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 308.41 points, or 2.4%, at 13,412.55 and the S&P 500 climbed 36.2 points, or 2.5%, to 1,462.42. (MarketWatch)