Asia: China central bank frees up cash for banks ahead of Lunar New Year China’s central bank said it will let some commercial banks temporarily keep fewer required reserves to help them cope with the heavy demand for cash ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, a step that analysts say does not signal any

U.S.: Flattening U.S. Yield Curve Nears Decade Lows in Final 2017 Push The U.S. yield curve is getting one final flattening push before calling it a year. The spread between the yields on 2-year and 10-year Treasuries narrowed to just 50.6 basis points Wednesday, close to the decade low reached on Dec. 6. While a

Europe: German firms optimistic for 2018, worker shortage main brake More than half of Germany’s industry associations have shrugged off worries about U.S. protectionist policies and Brexit, and are more positive about their situation than they were a year ago, a survey showed on Wednesday. The main factor holding firms back in Europe’s biggest economy

Europe: U.K. Posts Lowest November Budget Deficit Since 2007 on Tax Britain recorded its lowest November budget deficit for a decade as tax receipts posted another month of healthy growth. Net borrowing narrowed to 8.7 billion pounds ($11.6 billion) last month, below the median forecast of economists, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed

Europe: IMF's Lagarde says pre-Brexit warnings vindicated by slower UK growth Britain’s economy is already suffering from last year’s vote to leave the European Union - fulfilling previous warnings that Brexit supporters had dismissed as too gloomy, International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde, said on Wednesday. Before the June 2016 referendum, Lagarde had said Brexit

Europe: German business morale falls as political impasse clouds outlook German business morale deteriorated unexpectedly in December after hitting an all-time high in the previous month, a survey showed on Tuesday, suggesting that political deadlock in Europe’s economic powerhouse is clouding the outlook. Chancellor Angela Merkel is struggling to form a stable government after her

Europe: U.K. Manufacturing Orders Stay at Strongest Level Since 1988 U.K. factories enjoyed another month of strong demand in December, with orders staying at their highest level in almost three decades. The Confederation of British Industry said its monthly factory index was at 17 for a second month, matching the highest level since August 1988.

Asia: China raises short- and medium- term interest rates after Fed China’s central bank nudged money market interest rates upward on Thursday just hours after the Federal Reserve raised the U.S. benchmark, as Beijing seeks to prevent destabilizing capital outflows without hurting economic growth. Economists were surprised by the move but said at just five

Europe: German economy to grow by 2.6 pct in 2018 The German economy will expand by 2.6 percent next year, the Ifo institute said on Thursday in its updated forecast for Europe’s economic powerhouse, pointing to a broad upswing that is generating record-high employment and buoyant tax revenues. The surprisingly bullish projection - a hike

Europe: U.K. Loses Most Jobs Since 2015 as Labor Market Shows Strain Britain shed jobs at the fastest pace in almost 2 1/2 years between August and October in a sign that the labor market is slowing. The number of people in work fell by 56,000, the most since the period through May 2015, the