It is too early to know if the Federal Reserve will need to raise its benchmark overnight interest rate at its next policy meeting in early May, Cleveland Fed Bank President Loretta Mester said on Wednesday, even as she predicted rates will need to move higher.
Japan's economic output ran below full capacity for the 11th straight quarter in October-December, central bank data showed on Wednesday, suggesting that conditions for ending ultra-low interest rates have yet to fall into place.
New car registrations in the UK rose for the eighth consecutive month in March, recording an 18.2% growth from a year earlier, and also marked the best month ever for battery electric car sales, according to industry data released on Wednesday.
China's services activity in March revved up at the quickest pace in 2-1/2 years on robust new orders and job creation and a consumption-led post-COVID recovery, a private-sector survey showed on Thursday.
The U.S. trade deficit widened more than expected in February as exports of goods declined, suggesting that trade could drag on economic growth in the first quarter.
The U.S. services sector slowed more than expected in March as demand cooled, while a measure of prices paid by services businesses fell to the lowest in nearly three years, giving the Federal Reserve a boost in the fight against inflation.