http://en.xfafinance.com us-en Xinhua Finance Agency desdev@vip.qq.com http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1009080.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Tue, 27 Aug 2024 05:41:57 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1009080.shtml NEW YORK, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended mixed on Monday, with the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 cooling off after their best two-week run of the year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 65.44 points, or 0.16 percent, to 41,240.52. The S&P 500 sank 17.77 points, or 0.32 percent, to 5,616.84. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 152.03 points, or 0.85 percent, to 17,725.76.

Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with technology and consumer discretionary leading the laggards by losing 1.12 percent and 0.81 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, energy and consumer staples led the gainers by rising 1.11 percent and 0.72 percent, respectively.

U.S. factory orders for durable goods, including items like new cars and machinery, surged 9.9 percent in July, according to the U.S. Commerce Department on Monday. This far exceeded economists' expectations of a 4 percent increase. Orders have now risen in five of the past six months, following a 6.9 percent decline in June due to weak aircraft orders.

Chip stocks, including AMD, Arm Holdings, Micron, and Nvidia, which are set to report earnings later this week, saw declines on Monday.

"I think there's a little angst in the technology sector about the upcoming Nvidia earnings," Baird analyst Ross Mayfield said. "The market is in a pretty healthy place, but it is really hard to make big advances higher if tech is a laggard -- it's just too big of a weight in the index -- and right now, it is acting like a laggard."

Chinese electric vehicle maker XPeng revealed that its CEO purchased over 13 million U.S. dollars worth of company stock, leading to a 7.13 percent increase in its American depositary receipts.

Meantime, Chinese e-commerce company Pinduoduo (PDD) reported disappointing second quarter earnings results, falling short of revenue estimates and revenue guidance expectations. The stock fell nearly 28.51 percent in Monday's session. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1009074.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Tue, 27 Aug 2024 04:19:19 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1009074.shtml NEW YORK, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended mixed on Monday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 65.44 points, or 0.16 percent, to 41,240.52. The S&P 500 sank 17.77 points, or 0.32 percent, to 5,616.84. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 152.03 points, or 0.85 percent, to 17,725.76.

Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with technology and consumer discretionary leading the laggards by losing 1.12 percent and 0.81 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, energy and consumer staples led the gainers by rising 1.11 percent and 0.72 percent, respectively. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1009071.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Tue, 27 Aug 2024 04:02:14 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1009071.shtml CAIRO, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday approved a disbursement of 820 million U.S. dollars to Egypt as part of an 8 billion-dollar loan program.

The IMF said macroeconomic conditions in Egypt have improved since the program's first and second reviews in March, noting that inflationary pressures are gradually abating, foreign exchange shortages have been eliminated, and fiscal targets have been met.

However, the IMF warned that the regional environment remains difficult and that domestic policy challenges require decisive action.

The challenging regional environment, including "the conflict in Gaza and Israel and tensions in the Red Sea, as well as domestic policy and structural challenges," necessitate continued implementation of program commitments, the IMF said in a report.

It recommended continued fiscal consolidation, enhanced revenue mobilization, and accelerated structural reforms to boost private sector growth.

This tranche is part of an extended 8 billion U.S. dollar loan agreement finalized between Egypt and the IMF in March to help the country address the mounting impact of regional tensions on its macroeconomy.

The loan arrangement, which began in December 2022, is scheduled to conclude in September 2026, according to Egypt's Ministry of Finance.

Over the past two years, the U.S. dollar shortage in Egypt has led to the devaluation of the local currency and the emergence of a parallel currency exchange market, plunging Egypt into one of its worst economic crises.

The crisis has been further exacerbated by the Gaza conflict that erupted last October, impacting Egypt's tourism sector and halving its revenues from the Suez Canal. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1009065.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Tue, 27 Aug 2024 03:04:56 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1009065.shtml NEW YORK, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. dollar increased in late trading on Monday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, went up 0.13 percent to 100.851 at 3:00 p.m. (1900 GMT).

In late New York trading, the euro fell to 1.1163 U.S. dollars from 1.1187 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound decreased to 1.3190 dollars from 1.3203 dollars in the previous session.

The U.S. dollar bought 144.51 Japanese yen, higher than 144.30 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar dropped to 0.8471 Swiss francs from 0.8479 Swiss francs, and it lost to 1.3475 Canadian dollars from 1.3513 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar rose to 10.2072 Swedish Kronor from 10.1898 Swedish Kronor. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008892.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Mon, 26 Aug 2024 15:02:28 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008892.shtml TOKYO, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed lower on Monday as the Japanese yen rose against the U.S. dollar amid market speculations that the U.S. Federal Reserve might cut interest rates next month.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei stock index, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average, ended down 254.05 points, or 0.66 percent, from Friday to close the day at 38,110.22.

The broader Topix index, meanwhile, finished 23.31 points, or 0.87 percent, lower at 2,661.41.

On the forex market, the yen strengthened to the mid-143 range against the dollar, a level not seen in about three weeks, sparking concerns about worsening export margins for Japanese companies.

Market watchers here noted that the yen's rise exerted downward pressure on export-related stocks, particularly in the automotive sector, leading the Nikkei index to drop over 500 points during the morning session.

The speculation of a U.S. rate cut was fueled by remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell during the Jackson Hole symposium last week, where he hinted at a possible rate cut in September, further boosting the yen and pressuring export stocks, according to local analysts.

Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones by 830 to 773, with 43 issues remaining unchanged.

Tokyo Electron, Advantest, and TDK were among the notable decliners, while Fast Retailing, Nitori Holdings, and Daikin Industries posted gains. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008884.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Mon, 26 Aug 2024 14:30:52 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008884.shtml HANOI, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- The earnings from the Vietnam's motorcycle and car joint venture sector will witness compound annual growth rates of 1.6 percent and 4.8 percent respectively in 2024-2028, Vietnam News reported Monday, citing SSI Research.

According to SSI Research, while the third-quarter revenues of the car industry may have suffered as customers put off buying decisions, in anticipation of possible incentives, pent-up demand is poised to fuel revenue growth in the last quarter.

The accumulated demand is forecast to be the catalyst for revenue growth in the fourth quarter.

Given the uptick in both vehicle sales and profits from affiliated companies surpassing expectations in the second quarter of 2024, the analytical team of SSI Research forecasts that the domestic car and motorcycle sales of the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association in 2024 will rise by 9 percent and 2 percent, respectively, from last year.

Automobile sales in Vietnam in July increased 9 percent from the previous month to 28,920 units, said the association. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008822.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Mon, 26 Aug 2024 10:06:21 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008822.shtml BEIJING, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- The following are the indices of major stock markets worldwide on Monday.



IN ASIA

The Shanghai Composite Index opened at 2,855.47 points, up 1.10 points, or 0.04 percent.

The Shenzhen Component Index opened at 8,194.94 points, up 13.02 points, or 0.16 percent.

The Hang Seng Index opened at 17,709.27 points, up 97.17 points, or 0.55 percent.

The S&P/ASX 200 index opened at 8,074.00 points, up 50.10 points, or 0.62 percent.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average opened at 38,156.41 points, down 207.86 points, or 0.54 percent.

The Straits Times Index opened at 3,393.64 points, up 5.65 points, or 0.17 percent.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index opened at 2,716.88 points, up 15.19 points, or 0.56 percent.



IN THE UNITED STATES

The S&P 500 Index had no trading.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average had no trading.

The Nasdaq Composite Index had no trading.



IN EUROPE

The DAX Index had no trading.

The FTSE 100 Index had no trading.

The Paris CAC 40 had no trading.

(This article is generated by Xinhua News Robot.) ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008804.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Mon, 26 Aug 2024 09:21:35 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008804.shtml SYDNEY, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- Over 1.5 million Australian homes are experiencing insurance affordability stress as premiums rise with the growing threat of natural disasters, a report has found.

According to the report published by the Sydney-based Actuaries Institute on Monday, as of March 2024, there were 1.61 million households facing home insurance affordability stress, which is defined as having premiums that cost more than four weeks' of gross household income.

The figure represents a 30-percent increase from 1.24 million households 12 months earlier.

The report found that those 1.61 million households spend an average of 9.6 weeks of their gross annual income on home insurance, which is seven times more than non-stressed households.

The proportion of households spending more than four weeks' gross income on home insurance premiums rose to 15 percent in 2024 - up from 12 percent in 2023 and 10 percent in 2022.

Median insurance premiums for all Australian homes rose by 9 percent between 2023 and 2024, the report said, and for properties with premiums in the top 5 percent they rose by 30 percent - typically due to floods and cyclones.

"While insurance remains generally affordable for 85 percent of households, it's concerning that there's now 1.6 million households struggling to afford to insure their homes, up from 1.24 million a year ago," Sharanjit Paddam, lead author of the report, said.

"This is because increases in premiums are outpacing wages growth. Unfortunately, we expect this will continue because of the overall increasing risk of natural disasters associated with climate change, which will continue to put upward pressure on premiums."

The Northern Territory, regional Western Australia, southwest Queensland and northern New South Wales had the highest rates of extreme affordability pressure, with half the population of those areas facing premiums that exceed a four weeks' income due to the high flood and cyclone risk. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008803.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Mon, 26 Aug 2024 09:02:14 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008803.shtml CANBERRA, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- Australia's right-to-disconnect laws have come into effect, granting workers the entitlement to refuse contact outside of their working hours.

From Monday, employees in Australia will have the right to refuse to monitor, read or respond to work communication outside their paid hours under laws passed by parliament in February.

A report published by the independent think tank the Australia Institute in 2023 found that Australian workers do an average of 5.4 hours per week of unpaid work, equating to 131 billion Australian dollars (88.9 billion U.S. dollars) worth of unpaid work across the country every year.

Workers aged 18-29 do the most unpaid work, the report found, at 7.4 hours per week on average.

Murray Watt, the minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, said on Sunday that the right to disconnect ensures that the law keeps up with technology.

"What's not acceptable is for people to be taking constant calls or constant emails with an expectation that they're going to be monitoring and responding, when they're not getting paid to do it," he told reporters.

However, the right to disconnect does not apply to emergencies and the new laws have exceptions for cases where an employee's refusal to be contacted is considered unreasonable, depending on their role, the reason for the contact, how contact is made and other factors.

The legislation drew criticism from business groups as it moved through parliament and the Business Council of Australia (BCA) on Monday said it risks holding Australia's historically low productivity back even further.

"These laws put Australia's competitiveness at risk by adding more cost and complexity to the challenge of doing business, and that means less investment and fewer job opportunities," BCA chief executive Bran Black said in a statement.

The new laws apply to workers at companies with more than 15 employees from Monday and will take effect for those at small businesses from August 22, 2025. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008288.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 16:08:04 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008288.shtml HANOI, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- Major real estate developers in Vietnam are looking at investing in the retirement housing market to capitalize on the country's aging population, Vietnam News reported Friday.

There were significant opportunities to develop retirement real estate in Vietnam to meet the demand for nursing care and health care to improve the quality of life of older people, the newspaper cited Pham Thi Mien from the Vietnam Real Estate Brokers Association as saying.

Troy Griffiths from the real estate agency Savills Vietnam said there were many levers to support the development of retirement real estate. The traditional family model is gradually evolving, providing great opportunities for developing the retirement housing segment.

Vietnam is listed by the United Nations Population Fund as one of 10 countries with the fastest population aging rate in the world.

People aged 60 and over are predicted to account for 25 percent of the country's population by 2050. By 2036, the Southeast Asian nation will be an aged society. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008262.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 14:32:58 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008262.shtml SINGAPORE, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- Singapore's core inflation, as measured by the consumer price index (CPI), eased to 2.5 percent year-on-year in July from 2.9 percent in June, official data showed Friday.

The decrease was driven by lower inflation across all broad core CPI categories, according to the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

The core CPI excludes private transport and accommodation costs to better reflect household expenses.

The all-items inflation in Singapore came in 2.4 percent year-on-year in July, unchanged from June. The slowdown in accommodation and core inflation was offset by a pickup in private transport costs. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008246.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 13:09:23 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008246.shtml HANOI, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam remains resilient and attractive to foreign investors thanks to its strong fundamentals despite global uncertainties, Vietnam News cited the property research firm CBRE on Friday.

According to CBRE, Vietnam's hotel market demonstrated positive signs, with both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City recording higher revenue per available room compared to the same period in 2023.

Henry Chin, global head of Investor Thought Leadership and head of Research, Asia Pacific for CBRE, said "For investors, the key lies in strategizing according to the current stage of each key sector in the north, central, and southern regions of Vietnam, while adapting to the broader structural shifts unfolding worldwide."

"We continue to see a strong appetite among foreign investors to enter the market, with a focus in particular on the industrial and logistics space, the hospitality market as the world re-opens post-pandemic, and the core asset classes driven by the country's unique supply and demand dynamics," he said. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008241.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 12:40:24 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008241.shtml TOKYO, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda on Friday warned that markets at home and abroad remain unstable, adding the authorities will closely monitor the situation with extremely high vigilance after a market rout earlier this month following the central bank's latest interest rate hike.

The BOJ will continue to pursue policy normalization as long as the economy moves toward stable 2 percent inflation, Ueda told a parliamentary meeting. "There is no change in our basic stance to adjust the degree of monetary easing," he said.

The remark came as some market players assumed that the recent market ructions, marked by the benchmark Nikkei stock index's biggest plunge on record earlier this month, would discourage the BOJ from further normalization.

When asked about the turmoil in the stock market, Ueda cited concerns over a potential U.S. recession as a key catalyst, adding that "overdone" worries pertaining to the U.S. economy have since eased.

Regarding the possibility of additional interest rate hikes, Ueda said the central bank will decide after cautiously examining the impact of its latest rate hike in July on the economy and prices.

At the two-day policy meeting through July 31, the BOJ decided to raise its short-term interest rate to around 0.25 percent from the previous range of zero to 0.1 percent. In a press conference soon after the decision, Ueda expressed eagerness to hike the target again by the end of the year, saying, "We will raise interest rates further if the economy and prices move in line with our projections." ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008227.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 11:59:44 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008227.shtml SEOUL, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's foreign currency deposit rose for the second straight month due to strong demand for the U.S. dollar deposit, central bank data showed Friday.

The deposit, denominated in foreign currencies, gained 3.87 billion U.S. dollars from a month earlier to 94.44 billion dollars at the end of July, after growing 1.61 billion dollars in the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).

The consecutive growth was attributable to higher demand for the U.S. currency, affected by the temporary deposit of foreign currency bond issuance funds and the inflow of securities investment funds.

The deposit, denominated in the U.S. dollar, jumped 4.57 billion dollars from a month earlier to 78.04 billion dollars at the end of July.

The Japanese yen and the euro deposits decreased to 10.1 billion dollars and 4.13 billion dollars each.

The Chinese yuan deposit came in at 1.01 billion dollars at the end of July, down 0.17 billion dollars from a month earlier.

Foreign currency deposit, owned by companies, soared 3.85 billion dollars to 79.33 billion dollars in the cited month, while the individuals-possessed deposit added 0.02 billion dollars to 15.11 billion dollars. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008214.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 11:06:25 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008214.shtml WELLINGTON, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand's total volume of retail sales fell 1.2 percent in the June 2024 quarter, which continues the downward trend observed in the last eight quarters, according to the statistics department Stats NZ on Friday.

Eleven of the 15 retail industries had lower sales volumes in the June 2024 quarter, compared with the March 2024 quarter, with the largest contributors to the fall in the retail activity being electrical and electronic goods retailing, which was down 6 percent, Stats NZ said.

Other contributors to the fall in retail activity include motor vehicle and parts retailing, food and beverage services, and clothing, footwear, and personal accessories, it said.

Retail sales decreased the most in the electrical and electronic goods industry and the motor vehicles and parts industry. By contrast, supermarket sales were up in the June quarter, Stats NZ business financial statistics manager Ricky Ho said.

The total volume of retail sales per person fell 1.5 percent in the June 2024 quarter compared with the March 2024 quarter, Ho said, adding that this is the 10th consecutive quarter to see a fall.

"Retail sale volumes per person have been falling for the last two-and-a-half years," he said, adding that the last time for several quarters of consistent falls was between 2007 and 2009, which coincided with the global financial crisis. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008203.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 10:32:47 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008203.shtml PHNOM PENH, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The number of Chinese tourists to Cambodia rose by 45.6 percent year-on-year in the first seven months of 2024, said a Cambodian Ministry of Tourism's report released on Thursday.

A total of 463,980 Chinese visitors traveled to the Southeast Asian country during the January-July period, up 45.6 percent from 318,498 over the same period last year, the report said.

The Chinese tourist arrivals accounted for 12.4 percent of a total of 3.74 million international arrivals to Cambodia during the cited period, the report said, adding that China was the third largest source of international visitors after Thailand and Vietnam.

Cambodian Ministry of Tourism's Secretary of State and Spokesperson Top Sopheak said the kingdom is keen to see more Chinese tourists as their visits have contributed to the country's economic growth and tourism development.

He is confident that the 2024 Cambodia-China People-to-People Exchange Year, which was launched in January, would help attract more Chinese visitors to the country.

Yen Samnang, a research fellow at the Phnom Penh-based independent think tank Asian Vision Institute, said that with the help of the People-to-People Exchange Year, Cambodia is expected to further boost Chinese tourist arrivals and investment.

"It is believed that this initiative, along with other free trade pacts in place, will become a key driver of tourism promotion and economic cooperation, drawing not only tourists but also Chinese investors to the kingdom, leading to job creation and infrastructure development," he told Xinhua.

"Consequently, it will contribute to the long-term economic growth of Cambodia," he added.

Tourism is one of the four pillars supporting Cambodia's economy, in addition to garment, footwear, and travel goods export, agriculture, and the construction and real estate sector.

The kingdom has four UNESCO-listed world heritage sites, namely the Angkor Archaeological Park in the northwestern Siem Reap province, the Temple Zone of Sambor Prei Kuk in the central Kampong Thom province, and the Temple of Preah Vihear and the Koh Ker archaeological site in the northwestern Preah Vihear province.

Besides, it has a pristine coastline stretching in the length of about 450 kilometers in the four southwestern provinces of Sihanoukville, Kampot, Kep and Koh Kong. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008176.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 09:48:56 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008176.shtml SEOUL, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's capital Seoul recorded its longest tropical nights this year, with the capital city's overnight temperature hovering above 25 degrees Celsius, Yonhap news agency cited the weather agency on Friday.

The temperature in Seoul remained above 25 degrees Celsius from 6:01 p.m. local time on Thursday until 9:00 a.m. on Friday, extending the city's tropical night streak, which began on July 21, to 33 consecutive days.

Including three tropical nights that occurred before July 21, the total number of tropical nights in Seoul reached 36 in 2024.

It was on par with the record high of 36 tropical nights tallied in 1994, which was the longest since modern weather observations started in Seoul in 1907.

The tropical night streak in Seoul was forecast to continue throughout this weekend.

On the southern resort island of Jeju, tropical nights lasted for the 39th successive day, marking the second-longest streak for the island.

The weather agency forecast that Friday's daytime highs were estimated at a range of 31-36 degrees Celsius across the country. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008158.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 07:25:06 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008158.shtml NEW YORK, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended lower on Thursday, as investors readied for a speech by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the central bank's annual Jackson Hole conference due Friday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 177.71 points, or 0.43 percent, to 40,712.78. The S&P 500 sank 50.21 points, or 0.89 percent, to 5,570.64. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 299.63 points, or 1.67 percent, to 17,619.35.

Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with technology and consumer discretionary leading the laggards by losing 2.13 percent and 1.87 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, real estate and financials led the gainers by rising 0.56 percent and 0.48 percent, respectively.

Stocks felt downward pressure from rising bond yields on Thursday. Investors were eager for more clarity on future rate policies. According to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group's FedWatch Tool, traders universally expected a rate cut next month, though opinions differed on whether the reduction will be by a quarter or half a percentage point.

"The decision as to whether the Fed will start its policy normalisation cycle with either a 0.25 percent or 0.5 percent rate cut will ultimately be informed by labour market data released in early September," said Simon Dangoor, Goldman Sachs Asset Management's head of fixed-income macro strategies.

Early Thursday morning, the U.S. Labor Department reported 232,000 initial jobless claims for the week ending Aug. 17, slightly up from 228,000 the previous week and aligning with economists' expectations.

This data drew heightened attention as an official revision to payroll figures earlier this week indicated that the labor market -- a crucial factor for policymakers -- may have been cooling earlier than previously believed. Signs of labor market stress could influence the extent of the Fed's upcoming rate cuts, with some hoping for a 0.5 percent reduction. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008124.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Fri, 23 Aug 2024 03:04:47 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1008124.shtml NEW YORK, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. dollar increased in late trading on Thursday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, went up 0.46 percent to 101.510 at 3:00 p.m. (1900 GMT).

In late New York trading, the euro dropped to 1.1111 dollars from 1.1162 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound was down to 1.3092 dollars from 1.3106 dollars in the previous session.

The U.S. dollar bought 146.22 Japanese yen, higher than 144.75 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar rose to 0.8520 Swiss francs from 0.8504 Swiss francs, and it was up to 1.3605 Canadian dollars from 1.3583 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar climbed to 10.2487 Swedish Kronor from 10.1827 Swedish Kronor. ]]> http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1007946.shtml Xinhua Finance Agency World Thu, 22 Aug 2024 16:46:08 +0800 http://en.xfafinance.com/html/World/2024/1007946.shtml TOKYO, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks ended higher on Thursday, buoyed by technology issues tracking overnight gains on the U.S. Wall Street market, with the market awaiting remarks by the Japanese central bank governor.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei stock index, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average, ended up 259.21 points, or 0.68 percent, from Wednesday at 38,211.01, its best close since July 31.

The broader Topix index, meanwhile, finished 6.54 points, or 0.25 percent, higher at 2,671.40.

Stocks were lifted by heavyweight technology issues that tracked overnight gains in their U.S. counterparts with expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve is on course to begin cutting interest rates in September, analysts said.

Meanwhile, gains were capped as investors awaited remarks by the Bank of Japan chief Kazuo Ueda at a parliamentary committee Friday over recent volatility on the stock market, brokers said. ]]>