Economic News

UK unemployment has hit its highest level for six years, Office for National Statistics figures have shown. There were 1.65 million people classed as unemployed in the three months to May, an increase of 90,000 on the previous quarter, the ONS said. The number claiming unemployment benefit also increased, rising by 5,900 to 956,600 in June. Analysts said the latest figures may help to ease worries of inflationary pressures in the economy. Wage growth cools The unemployment rate was 5.4%,  ...

European Union finance ministers have cleared Slovenia's entry into the eurozone, the last legal hurdle before it adopts the euro next January. They confirmed the political decision made by EU leaders in June, making Slovenia the first of the trade bloc's new members to take up the currency. It will join the 12-member eurozone on 1 January 2007, with an exchange rate of 239.64 Slovene tolars to the euro. Slovenia was one of 10 new EU members that joined on 1 May, 2004. At that time many of t ...

By Rajat Bhattacharya SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Asian stocks fell and the dollar dropped to a one-month low against the yen on Monday after weak U.S. jobs figures and a strong pick up in wages rekindled worries about slowing economic growth and rising inflation. Japan's Nikkei stock average dropped 1.2 percent to 15,126.03 by midday, hit by losses at top exporters, such as Toyota Motor Corp., which  ...

TOKYO (Reuters) - The Nikkei average slid 1.19 percent on Monday, hit by losses in exporters such as Toyota Motor Corp. (7203.T: Quote, Profile, Research) , after U.S. employment data raised concerns about an economic slowdown and inflation in a key market for Japanese goods. The stronger yen added to the sell-off. The Japanese currency was near a one-month high against the dollar, increasing wo ...

TOKYO (Reuters) - The Nikkei average slid 1.40 percent on Monday, hit by losses in exporters such as Toyota Motor Corp., after U.S. employment data raised concerns about an economic slowdown and inflation in a key market for Japanese goods. The stronger yen added to the sell-off. The Japanese currency was near a one-month high against the dollar, increasing worries that exporters would see lower  ...

The US economy created 121,000 jobs in June, below analyst expectations, US Labor Department figures show. That outstripped May's figure of 75,000, later upgraded to 92,000, but is seen by some as signs that the economy is starting to cool. Other figures showed that hourly wages increased sharply, hitting $16.70 an hour, a 0.5% rise from May. Meanwhile, the US unemployment rate remained unchanged at the 4.6% figure from the previous month. Federal Reserve policy-makers have been trying to t ...