<strong>Japan October Retail Sales Keep Solid Y/Y Gain on Eased Covid Rules; Nearly Flat M/M on Price Hikes </strong>

–METI Keeps View After Recent Upgrade: Retail Sales Picking Up –Department Store Sales on Recovery Track but Still Below Pre-Pandemic Levels –Demand for Cosmetics, Drugs Remains Strong; Auto Sales Picking Up  By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japanese retail sales posted their eighth straight year-on-year increase in October, led by wide-ranging price hikes, but lower Covid […]

<strong>Japan October Core CPI Surges 3.6% Y/Y to Hit 40-Year High on Food Markups, Mobile Communications Fee Rebound </strong>

–Processed Food Now Largest Inflation Factor as Energy’s Contribution Shrinks  –Core CPI (Ex-Fresh Food) Y/Y Rise Highest Since +3.6% in February 1982 With or Without Sales Tax Hike Impact –Core-Core CPI (Ex-Fresh Food, Energy) +2.5% Y/Y, 30-Year High Excluding Impact of 2014, 1997 Sales Tax Hikes –Total CPI Jumps 3.7% Y/Y, 31-Year High Excluding Effects […]

Italy’s Rightist Government Aims to Soften EU Fiscal Rules, Sees ‘Reinforced Supervision’ Unacceptable – Sources

By Silvia Marchetti ROME (MaceNews) – Italy’s newly appointed rightist government will seek to negotiate softer fiscal rules at the European level to take into account ‘country-specifics’ for more lenient and longer adjustment paths, according to ruling coalition sources. Officials are worried that the new rules concerning the reform of the Stability and Growth pact […]

ISM: US October Service Sector Growth Slows Amid Uncertainty; Supply Delays Linger 

–ISM’s Nieves: Concerned About Corporate Mindset of Cost Containment at Threat of Recession–ISM’s Nieves: Service Providers See No Recession in 2022, Some Pullback in 2023 –ISM’s Nieves Agrees with ISM Manufacturing Outlook: Contraction Ahead but Not Necessarily Recession By Max Sato (MaceNews) – U.S. service sector growth slowed for the second straight month in October […]

Analysis: FOMC Set for Fourth 75 BP Rate Hike But What Comes Next?

– Even After Another Big Hike Real Funds Rate Will Be Negative – Mixed Signals About How High Fed Willing to Go to Fight inflation By Steven K. Beckner (MaceNews) – The Federal Reserve will almost certainly take another fairly aggressive monetary tightening step at its Federal Open Market Committee meeting next week, but its interest rate hike […]