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Australia Home Loans Climb 3.2% In August





The total number of home loans in Australia was up a seasonally adjusted 3.2 percent on month in August, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday - coming in at 33,468.


That exceeded expectations for an increase of 2.3 percent following the upwardly revised 4.3 percent increase in July (originally 4.2 percent).


Personal finance commitments fell 2.2 percent in August following a 3.8 percent fall in July and was down 12.9 percent on August 2018.


The value of new lending commitments for owner occupier dwellings rose 1.9 per cent nationally in August, with rises in all states and territories apart from the Northern Territory.


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Sri Lanka Central Bank Keeps Rates Unchanged





Sri Lanka's central bank left its key interest rates unchanged despite weak economic growth and higher inflation.


The monetary board of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka decided to keep the Standing Deposit Facility Rate and the Standing Lending Facility Rate steady at 7.00 percent and 8.00 percent, respectively, the bank said in a statement on Friday.


The bank had reduced the rate by 50 basis points each in May and August.


The economic growth eased to 1.6 percent in the second quarter as the Easter Sunday attacks weighed heavily on the service sector activity. The central bank forecast economic growth to remain subdued this year but a gradual recovery is expected over the medium term.


Further, the bank expects inflation to stabilize well within the desired range of 4-6 percent with transitory supply side price pressures easing.


The vulnerability of the currency is likely to be a key barrier to looser policy in the near term, Alex Holmes, an economist at Capital Economics, said.


Global sentiment should start to improve around the middle of next year, and this could allow the central bank to cut interest rates further, Holmes noted. The economist expects a 50 basis point reduction in the second half of next year.


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New Zealand Services Sector Slows In September - BusinessNZ





The services sector in New Zealand continued to expand in September, albeit at a slower rate, the latest survey from BusinessNZ showed on Monday with a Performance of Services Index score of 54.4.


That's down from 54.6 in August, although it remains well above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.


Among the individual components of the survey, sales (54.4), supplier deliveries (50.5), stocks (51.8), employment (52.7) and new orders (59.3) all continued to expand last month.


"The fact that new orders/business (59.3) improved to its highest result since January should assist with general business activity going forward. However, looking more broadly the gap in performance between the services and manufacturing sectors persists. With other key economic data showing a general trend decline, the question becomes to what degree will the services sector be affected by slowing influences elsewhere in the months ahead," BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope said.


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China Consumer Prices Climb 3.0% On Year In September





Consumer prices in China were up 3.0 percent on year in September, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Tuesday.


That exceeded expectations for 2.9 percent and was up from 2.8 percent in August.


On a monthly basis, inflation rose 0.9 percent - accelerating from 0.7 percent in the previous month.


The bureau also said that producer prices contracted 1.2 percent on year, matching expectations following the 0.8 percent decline a month earlier.


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New Zealand CPI Climbs 0.7% In Q3





Consumer prices in New Zealand were up 0.7 percent on quarter in the third quarter of 2019, Statistics New Zealand said on Wednesday - surpassing expectations for an increase of 0.6 percent, which would have been unchanged from the previous three months.


Housing and household utilities rose 1.2 percent on quarter, influenced by higher prices for property rates and related services (up 4.9 percent).


Food prices rose 1.3 percent, influenced by higher prices for meat, poultry, and fish (up 3.4 percent).


On a yearly basis, consumer prices advanced 1.5 percent - again exceeding expectations for 1.4 percent and down from 1.7 percent in the three months prior.


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Australia Unemployment Data Due On Thursday





Australia will on Thursday release jobless numbers for September, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.


The unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 5.3 percent, with the addition of 15,000 jobs following the gain of 34,700 jobs in August. The participation rate is called unchanged at 66.2 percent.


Singapore will provide September numbers for imports, exports and trade balance. In August, imports were worth SGD41.00 billion and exports were at SGD45.18 billion for a trade surplus of SGD4.18 billion.


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Chinese Data Due On Friday





China is scheduled to release a raft of data on Friday, headlining a busy day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. On tap are Q3 numbers for gross domestic product and September figures for industrial production, retail sale, fixed asset investment and unemployment.


GDP is expected to rise 1.5 percent on quarter and 6.1 percent on year, slowing from 1.6 percent on quarter and 6.2 percent on year in the three months prior.


Industrial production is tipped to add 5.0 percent on year, up from 4.4 percent in August. Retail sales are expected to add an annual 7.8 percent, up from 7.5 percent in the previous month.


Fixed asset investment is called steady at 5.5 percent, while the jobless rate is predicted to be unchanged at 5.2 percent.


Japan will see September data for nationwide consumer prices, with forecasts suggesting an increase of 0.2 percent on year - slowing from 0.3 percent in August. Core CPI is pegged at an annual 0.3 percent, down from 0.5 percent in the previous month.


Hong Kong will release unemployment numbers for September; in August, the jobless rate was 2.9 percent.


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New Zealand Credit Card Spending Falls In September





New Zealand's credit card spending declined in September after rising in the previous month, figures from Reserve Bank of New Zealand showed on Monday.


Credit card spending fell to 0.1 percent month-on-month in September, after a 2.5 percent increase in August. In July, credit card spending declined 1.6 percent.


Domestic billing dropped 0.2 percent monthly to NZ$3.43 billion and overseas billings rose 0.3 percent to NZ$586 million.


On a year-on-year basis, overall credit card spending grew to 4.8 percent in September, but slower than 6.0 percent growth logged in the previous month.

Hong Kong Inflation Data Due On Tuesday





Hong Kong is on Tuesday scheduled to release September figures for consumer prices, highlighting an extremely light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.


In August, inflation was up 3.5 percent on year.


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New Zealand Trade Deficit NZ$1.242 Billion In September





New Zealand posted a merchandise trade deficit of NZ$1.242 billion in September, Statistics New Zealand said on Wednesday.


That exceeded expectations for a shortfall of NZ$1.375 billion following the NZ$1.565 billion deficit in August.


Exports were up 5.1 percent on year to NZ$4.47 billion, beating forecasts for NZ$4.30 billion and up from NZ$4.13 billion in the previous month.


Imports fell an annual 2.1 percent to NZ$5.71 billion versus expectations for NZ$5.70 billion and up from NZ$5.69 billion a month earlier.


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