Tag: disappointing
Australia’s jobless rate holds steady at 4.9%
Figures today revealed Australia’s unemployment rate held steady at 4.9% in May. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the economy created just 7,800 jobs last month – far worse than the 25,000 analysts had forecast. However, the number was offset by a rise of 29,800 in part-time employment, which helped maintain the jobless rate. [...]
Northern Rock reports £232m loss
Crisis-torn Northern Rock has today unveiled an underlying loss of £232.4 million for the 2010 year for its so-called “good“ bank. Despite the loss, the Newcastle-based bank will pay more than £13 million in bonuses to its 4,000-strong workforce. The bonus comes despite executive chairman Ron Sandler describing the losses as “disappointing”. He comments: “2010 [...]
Euro zone retail sales flat in December
Eurostat has today revealed retail sales in the euro zone were unchanged in December from January. The figures disappointed analysts who had expected a 0.4% rise in which is traditionally the busiest month of the year for retailers. The latest figures highlight the fragile state of the economy and weak consumer demand. On an annual [...]
Pound falls on disappointing GDP figures
The pound fell this morning after quarter four GDP figures were weaker than expected. While official figures showed that the UK has finally emerged from recession in the fourth quarter, the economy only grew 0.1% – an expansion of 0.4% had been expected. The pound fell to $1.614 against the US dollar – a fall [...]
US housing starts see unexpected fall in October
According to the Commerce Department, construction of new US homes plunged 10.6% in October to an annual rate of 529,000 properties – the lowest level since April. Analysts had expected the rate to exceed the 600,000 mark. The decline in construction was led by a fall in demand for both single-family and multi-family occupancies. Meanwhile, [...]
US retailers reveal disappointing sales for July
As consumers in the US are faced with higher food and fuel prices, figures show that retail sales in the US rose at the slowest pace in four months. Consumer spending is closely monitored in the US as it makes up for over 60% of total economic activity. The world’s largest retailer, Wal-Mart, posted disappointing [...]
