Commodities
New Zealand's largest city enters fresh Covid-19 lockdown
New Zealand’s largest city is to go back into lockdown, after the country’s prime minister reported four cases of community transmission of Covid-19 on Tuesday evening local time.
German investor sentiment improves in August
German investor sentiment improved in August, according to the latest survey from the ZEW Center for European Economic Research in Mannheim.
Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai arrested under new security law
Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai was arrested on Monday and his media offices raided under China's new controversial national security law.
China places tit-for-tat sanctions on 11 Americans
China is imposing sanctions on 11 Americans including senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio in retaliation for similar measures announced by the US on Friday.
China factory price inflation eases in July
China's factory prices fell at a slower pace in July as oil prices and industrial activity rose, fuelling signs of recovery in the world's second-biggest economy.
US non-farm payrolls surprise to the upside in July, unemployment retreats
Hiring in the US continued to outpace forecasts last month with most economists bedeviled by all the distortions in the official data in the wake of disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic, including to statisticians' work.
Sunak rules out furlough extension, says UK won't hesitate on quarantines
UK Finance Minister Rishi Sunak on Friday ruled out an extension to the government’s coronavirus furlough scheme, saying it could not carry on indefinitely.
China import growth unexpectedly dips in July
Chinese exports printed well ahead of economists' forecasts again in July but import growth dipped, stoking some concern about the pace of the domestic recovery in China.
Weekly US jobless claims surprise to the downside
Jobless claims in America unexpectedly broke significantly lower over the preceding week.
German factory orders surge in June
German factory orders surged in June although volumes were still much lower than before the coronavirus pandemic, according to provisional figures released by Destatis on Thursday.
US trade deficit narrows sharply in June buoyed by auto exports
America's shortfall in trade on goods and services shrank sharply in June as exports bounced back at roughly twice the speed as purchases from overseas.
Sberbank structures first trade finance deal
Sberbank structured a trade finance deal with Egyptian authorities for the purchase of wheat, its first ever.
Rebound in US services extends into second month, ISM says
Services sector activity in the US outpaced economists' forecast in July, extending its recovery into a second month, the results of a closely-followed survey revealed.
US labour market recovers at slower pace in July
The US labour market recovery slowed sharply in July as the private sector added 167,000 jobs last month, according to the ADP National Employment Report.
BofA sees gold hitting $3,000/oz., silver at $50/oz.
Strategists at Bank of America hiked their 18-month target for gold futures from $2,000/oz. to $3,000/oz. as governments continue to act to mend the damage from Covid-19, backstopped by central banks.
Gold breaches $2,000 an ounce for first time
Gold prices have hit a hit fresh record high as investors continue to look for a safe place to park their cash.
Eurozone retail sales rise but undershoot forecasts
Eurozone retail sales increased 5. 7% in June, short of market expectations, as trading rose strongly in Spain and Italy but declined in Germany.
China services growth slows unexpectedly
Growth in China's services sector slowed to a three-month low in July as new exports declined and job cuts continued, an industry survey showed.
Enormous blast rocks Beirut
An enormous blast rocked all of Beirut shortly before 1700 BST with initial reports citing official sources saying that it was the result of an accidental fire at a fireworks depot. 3rd video from another angle. Initial reports that explosion occurred due to accidental fire break in fireworks cache #Lebanon #Beirutpic. twitter. com/1WnCO6N0HI — Hemat (@Himat75) August 4, 2020 WATCH: Aftermath of Beirut's massive explosion. Many feared dead pic. twitter. com/55siEnzLSU — BNO News (@BNONews) August 4, 2020.
US factory orders grow more quickly than expected in June
Factory orders in the US grew more quickly than expected last month.