Economic News

BEIJING (XFN-ASIA) - China is urgently in need of faster economic and financial reform on several levels for its own good and, in many ways, does not do as good a job handling capital flows as several of its Asian neighbors, US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said. "I believe increasing the pace of reform in your financial services markets is in the best interest of China's future," Pa ...

LONDON (AFX) - European government bonds remained near the morning's softer levels as investors avoid large moves ahead of the European Central Bank rate decision and policy statement tomorrow. The ECB is already widely expected to hike rates by a quarter point to 3.75 pct, so the big question among market participants is how much farther the bank will tighten its monetary policy. As markets are  ...

RIGA, Latvia (AP) - International analysts on Wednesday welcomed a package of inflation-cutting measures adopted in Latvia, but warned that the efforts may be "too little too late" and that the fastest-growing economy in the European Union still risked a hard landing. On Tuesday the Latvian government approved a number of emergency measures to combat economic overheating, including bala ...

LONDON (AFX) - The yen remained steady as the world's equity markets stabilised following the recent swings up and down. Yesterday's hefty rise in stock markets around the world raised risk appetite and prompted a sizeable sell-off of the Japanese currency, which had benefited from last week's equities rout. Today's relatively flat performance on Europe's bourses has helped the yen consolidate.  ...

LONDON (AFX) - Further evidence of mounting pay pressures in the UK, particularly in the manufacturing sector, have emerged this morning just as rate-setters at the Bank of England sat down for their two-day deliberations. Voca, which processes over 90 pct of UK salaries, said take home pay has risen by 4.2 pct in the year to February, from January's 3.3 pct. February's increase is the highest si ...

(Adds details, quotes) LONDON (AFX) - The minimum wage for adults will be increased to 5.52 stg an hour, compared with 5.35 currently, as economic data showed it was having an impact on pay differentials. Low Pay Commission chairman Paul Myners said he had also recommended the rate for 18-21 year-olds be lifted to 4.60 stg an hour from 4.45 stg, which had been accepted by Trade and Industry Secr ...

Press Association7 March 2007 The minimum wage is to increase by 17p an hour to £5.52, the Government announced today, an increase of 3.2%. WANT TO KNOW MORE? Best paid jobs revealed OTHER STORIES Grade unrepentant on phone-ins MPs to investigate free banking Market report: Wednesday latest Stores will pay for 'fuel' repairs BBC ready to launch online rival to iTunes  ...

LONDON (AFX) - European government bonds were softer as risk appetite tentatively rebuilds after market jitters in the past week. Bonds rallied in past days due to strong losses among equities and commodities, as markets reassessed the level of risk inherent in global financial markets. The cycle paused yesterday as equities finally bounced back a bit, although analysts are not confident this pau ...

Australia's economy grew by 2.8% in the final three months of 2006, boosted by household spending and a mining boom. The year-on-year figure, which topped analysts' expectations, came despite the country experiencing its worst drought in a century. Treasurer Peter Costello said strong levels of investment and profitability were "laying the foundations for ongoing prosperity". But he warned the severe drought would continue to be a drag on the economy. "The drought has drastically reduced far ...

- (Adds quotes, details from news conference from 8th para) NIIGATA, Japan (XFN-ASIA) - Bank of Japan deputy governor Kazumasa Iwata said recent financial market developments, including the unwinding of yen carry trades, were "technical position adjustments" by investors who have been too "complacent" about asset price volatility and risk-taking. Iwata, a sole dissenter among ...