Italy Government May Revise Fiscal Outlook, Cut Growth Forecasts Due to Ukraine Crisis – Sources
By Silvia Marchetti ROME (MaceNews) – Italy’s government could cut growth forecasts for this year and potentially raise deficit targets in the wake of the Ukraine crisis and its repercussions on the Italian economy, according to ruling coalition sources. “The extent of such impact is still to be fully weighed, but we might need to […]
US ISM Manufacturing Index Rebounds in February on New Orders
–ISM: Conflict in Ukraine Unlikely To Hurt US Manufacturing Expansion –ISM Concerned Rising Energy Prices To Provide Headwinds To US Economy –ISM Survey Shows Supply Chain Constraints Remain, Backlogs Grow By Max Sato (MaceNews) – US manufacturing activity rebounded in February after Covid restrictions caused by the Omicron variant slowed the sector’s growth in January, […]
Toyota To Suspend Japanese Domestic Factory Operations as Suspected Cyberattack Hits Supplier
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Toyota Motor said Monday that it will suspend all domestic factory operations on Tuesday after one of its parts suppliers was hit by a suspected cyberattack, adding to challenges for the auto industry that is already suffering from global chip shortages and pandemic-caused supply bottlenecks. It is unknown who staged […]
Japan January Industrial Output Dips As Covid Infections Hit Auto Factories
–METI Keeps View Output Shows Signs of Pickup As Firms See Rebound in Feb –METI To Watch Effects of Spread of Pandemic, Parts Shortages, Ukraine By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japan’s industrial production posted the second straight drop in January, slipping after a surge in November, as a spike in Omicron-led coronavirus cases caused some […]
Japan January Retail Sales Up on Year But Dip on Month As Covid Cases Spike 
–METI Reverses View: Retail Sales Are Flat Vs. Showing Signs of Pickup –Y/Y Rise Led by Higher Fuel Prices, Less Strict Covid Rules Vs. January 2021 By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japanese retail sales posted the fourth straight year-on-year rise in January, led by higher fuel prices and solid department store sales, as resumed restrictions […]
Japan February Tokyo Core CPI Rise Picks Up From January on Utilities, Processed Food
–Hotel Fees Slower After 2021 Double-Digit Gains Over 2020 Subsidized Discounts–Utilities Leading Energy Higher; Durable Goods Down As Stay-at-Home Demand Wanes–Most of Base Effect in Mobile Phone User Fee Cuts To Last Through March By Mas Sato (MaceNews) – The year-on-year rise in consumer prices in Tokyo, the leading indicator of the national average, picked […]
Analysis: Japan Economy Faces Headwind in Light of Russian Invasion of Ukraine
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japan’s wobbly economic recovery faces downside risks from high energy and commodities prices, which have surged on tensions over Ukraine between Russia and the West and could rise further on supply concerns now that Russia has invaded its neighbour. The direct impact of economic sanctions against Moscow on Japan’s trade […]
UPDATE: Pres Biden Upgrades Sanctions Vs Russia; ‘It’s a War Without a Cause’
By Frank Csongos and Denny Gulino WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – President Joe Biden announced Thursday new economic sanctions on Russia to punish its military invasion of Ukraine. Biden denounced Russian President Vladimir Putin of waging “naked aggression” and pledged Russia will bear the consequences. “It’s a war without a cause,” he said. Biden said the U.S. […]
Analysis: Canada’s Economy Survives Anti-Covid Mandate Blockade, Reputation at Stake
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – The Canadian economy appears to have emerged little hurt overall from a temporary blockade of its key US trade route caused by a truckers-led protest against anti-Covid mandates, but the government failure to prevent occupations of crucial border crossings and the national capital has tarnished the country’s reputation as an […]
Japan January Core CPI Rise Shrinks as Hotel, Insurance Upward Base Effects Wane
— Both Core and Total CPI Measures Mark 5th Straight Y/Y Gains on Energy — Utilities Push Up Overall Energy Costs; Durable Goods Prices Slide By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Consumer prices in Japan posted the fifth straight year-on-year rise in January but the pace of increase decelerated sharply as the 2021 base effects of […]