China's exports and imports rebounded more than expected in April after a weak trade data in the previous month that boost hopes that net trade would support economic growth, official data revealed Thursday. Largely due to the lower base of comparison, exports advanced 1.5 percent on a yearly basis in April, the customs office reported. This was faster than the 1.0 percent expected growth and rev

The Philippine economy expanded at a faster pace in the first quarter but the rate fell short of expectations on weaker domestic demand growth amid tight monetary policy. Gross domestic product grew 5.7 percent from a year ago after rising 5.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported Thursday. Growth was seen at 5.9 percent.

The monetary policy announcement from the Bank of England is the only major event due on an otherwise light day for European economic news. The nine-member monetary policy committee of the BoE is widely expected to keep the benchmark rate unchanged for the sixth consecutive meeting. At 5.25 percent, the current Bank Rate is the highest since early 2008.

South Korea had a current account surplus of $6.93 billion in March, the Bank of Korea said on Thursday.

The U.S. dollar gained some ground against its major counterparts on Wednesday with traders assessing the likely move of the Federal Reserve with regard to interest rates, after recent economic data and hawkish comments from some Fed officials.

The Commerce Department released a report on Wednesday showing a pullback by U.S. wholesale inventories in the month of March. The report said wholesale inventories fell by 0.4 percent in March after rising by 0.2 percent in February. The decrease by wholesale inventories matched economist estimates.

Sweden's central bank lowered its policy rate for the first time in eight years and signaled another two more rate reductions during the second half of the year as inflation approaches the target of around 2 percent amid the weak economic activity. The executive board of the Riksbank, led by Governor Erik Thedeen, decided to lower the policy rate by 25 basis points to 3.75 percent.

Germany's industrial production declined for the first time in three months in March driven by the decreases in consumer and intermediate goods output, official data revealed Wednesday. Industrial production declined 0.4 percent on a monthly basis, in contrast to the 1.7 percent increase in February, Destatis reported.

Industrial production from Germany is the top economic news due on Wednesday, headlining a light day for the European economic news. At 2.00 am ET, Destatis is scheduled to issue Germany's industrial production data for March. Output is expected to fall 0.6 percent on month, in contrast to the 2.1 percent rise in February.

The U.S. dollar rebounded from recent weakness on Tuesday, supported by hawkish comments from a few Fed officials, including Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari.

Germany's exports rebounded at a faster-than-expected pace in March, while industrial orders declined unexpectedly on weak domestic demand, pouring cold water on hopes of better economic recovery. Exports gained 0.9 percent on a monthly basis, reversing a 1.6 percent fall in February, which was revised from a 0.2 percent gain reported initially, Destatis said Tuesday. Shipments were forecast to

The Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rates unchanged at a 12-year high for a fourth straight meeting, as widely expected, on Tuesday. The policy board of the RBA, led by Governor Michele Bullock, decided to maintain the cash rate target at 4.35 percent. The board also retained the interest rate paid on Exchange Settlement balances at 4.25 percent.

UK house prices rose only marginally in April as rising interest rate expectations weighed on the property market, data published by the mortgage lender Halifax showed on Tuesday. House prices posted a monthly increase of 0.1 percent in April, which was weaker than the expected 0.2 percent growth. However, this was in contrast to the 0.9 percent fall in March.

Factory orders and foreign trade figures from Germany and house prices from the UK are due on Tuesday, headlining a busy day for the European economic news. At 2.00 am ET, Destatis is scheduled to issue Germany's factory orders and external trade data. Orders are forecast to expand at a pace of 0.4 percent in March after a 0.2 percent gain in February. The trade surplus is expected to increase to

The U.S. dollar shed ground against its major counterparts on Monday with investors growing increasingly confident about a rate cut in the coming months.

The week ended May 3 witnessed heavy losses for the Dollar as a weaker-than-expected job market update renewed hopes of a rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve.

The euro area private sector growth accelerated to an 11-month high in April driven by the service sector, final survey results from S&P Global showed on Monday. The HCOB composite output index rose to 51.7 in April from 50.3 in the previous month. The flash estimate was 51.4.

Eurozone investor confidence improved for the seventh straight month in May to hit the highest level since February 2022 as both current situation and expectations rose in small but steady steps, a closely watched survey showed on Monday. The investor confidence index posted -3.6 in May, the behavioral research institute Sentix reported. The score was forecast to improve moderately to -4.8.

Indonesia's economy grew more than expected in the first quarter on robust government spending, official data revealed on Monday. Gross domestic product posted an annual growth of 5.11 percent in the first quarter after rising 5.04 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023. GDP was expected to grow 5.0 percent.

China's service sector continued to expand in April but the pace of growth moderated slightly, survey results from S&P Global showed on Monday. The Caixin services Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 52.5 in April from 52.7 in the previous month. A reading above 50.0 indicates expansion in the sector. The official PMI survey results also showed that the private sector growth moderated in April.

Final composite Purchasing Managers' survey results, investor sentiment and producer prices from the euro area are the top economic news due on Monday. At 3.15 am ET, Spain's services PMI survey results are due. Economists expect the services PMI to fall slightly to 56.0 in April from 56.1 in March.

After growing for fifteen consecutive months, U.S. service sector activity unexpectedly contracted in the month of April, according to a report released by the Institute for Supply Management on Friday. The ISM said its services PMI dipped to 49.4 in April from 51.4 in March, with a reading below 50 indicating contraction. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 52.0.

Euro area jobless rate remained unchanged at a record low for the fifth month in a row in March and the unemployment decreased, while a tight labor market could urge the European Central Bank to remain cautious even as policymakers gear up for an interest rate cut in June. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 6.5 percent in March, which is the same level as in the previous four months.

After reporting stronger than expected job growth over the past several months, the Labor Department released a report on Friday showing employment in the U.S. increased by much less than expected in the month of April. The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment climbed by 175,000 jobs in April after surging by an upwardly revised 315,000 jobs in March.

Unemployment figures from the euro area and Spain, and the purchasing managers' survey results for the services sector from the U.K. are the highlights on the economics front on Friday. Eurozone jobless rate is expected to remain steady at 6.5 percent in March. Eurostat is set to release the data at 05:00 am ET.