| US companies hire less in April | | US companies hired the fewest employees in seven months in April while manufacturing growth slowed to a crawl, suggesting the economy has run into a soft patch as budget-cutting in Washington starts to bite. | | Japan prices fall in March as deflation drags on | | Japan’s consumer price index fell 0.9 percent in March from a year earlier, underlining the challenge of ending a long spell of debilitating deflation despite an onslaught of monetary easing and stimulus spending. | | Spain unemployment hits record high | | More than six million Spaniards were out of work in the first quarter of this year, raising the jobless rate in the euro zone’s fourth biggest economy to 27.2 percent, the highest since records began in the 1970s. | | Interest rates down again in Spanish auction | | Spain has raised 4.7 billion euros ($6.2 billion) in a sale of medium and long-term debt at low interest rates in a sign that investors are confident that the government will be able to handle the economy. | | Indian exports decline despite weak currency | | India’s exports contracted in the financial year which has just ended, despite a sharp decline in the value of the rupee and efforts to turn the country into a manufacturing hub, data showed on Thursday. | | FDI into China gains in first quarter | | Foreign direct investment (FDI) in China rose marginally in the first quarter, the government announced on Thursday, led by Japanese, EU and US companies after declining last year. | | Greek prices lose 0.2% in March, first since 1968 | | Greek consumer prices fell in March for the first time since 1968, declining by 0.2 percent on an annualised basis owing in large part to lower costs for telecommunications, according to official data released on Tuesday. | | ADB sees India growth picking up to 6 percent | | NEW DELHI — Domestic consumption could boost India’s slowing economy to 6 percent growth this year, but the country may still fail to reach that level if it does not follow through on reforms to encourage investment, the Asian Development Bank said Tuesday. | |
