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Japan Rate Decision On Tap For Monday



The Bank of Japan will warp up its monetary policy meeting on Monday and then announce its decision on interest rates, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.

The central bank is widely expected to keep its benchmark lending rate unchanged at -0.10 percent, although it may introduce other means of stimulus to combat the economic woes brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.

China will see March figures for industrial profits; in February, profits plummeted 38.3 percent on year.

Hong Kong will release March numbers for imports, exports and trade balance. In February, imports were worth 277.11 billion HKD and exports were at 238.56 billion HKD for a trade deficit of 38.55 billion HKD.

Finally, the markets in New Zealand are closed on Monday for ANZAC Day and will reopen on Tuesday.

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European Economics Preview: French Consumer Confidence Data Due



Consumer confidence survey data from France is due on Tuesday, headlining a light day for the European economic news.

At 2.45 am ET, France's Insee is set to issue monthly consumer confidence survey results. The confidence index is forecast to fall sharply to 83 in April from 103 in March.

At 3.00 am ET, Spain's quarterly unemployment data is due from the statistical office INE. The jobless rate is expected to rise to 15.6 percent in the first quarter from 13.78 percent in the previous quarter.

At 3.30 am ET, Sweden's central bank is set to release its monetary policy report. In the meantime, retail sales and foreign trade figures are due from Statistics Sweden.

Half an hour later, IHS Markit releases Austria's manufacturing Purchasing Managers' survey results for April.

At 6.00 am ET, the Confederation of British Industry releases Distributive Trades survey results. The UK retail sales balance is seen at -40 percent in April versus -3 percent in March.

At 8.00 am ET, Hungary's central bank interest rate decision is due. The bank is expected to hold its key rate at 0.90 percent.

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Australia Inflation Rises 0.3% In Q1



Overall consumer prices in Australia were up 0.3 percent on quarter in the first quarter of 2020, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday. That exceeded expectations for an increase of 0.2 percent and was down from 0.7 percent in the three months prior.

On a yearly basis, inflation climbed 2.2 percent - again topping forecasts for 2.0 percent and up from 1.8 percent in Q4.

The Reserve Bank of Australia's trimmed mean was up 0.5 percent on quarter and 1.8 percent on year following the 0.4 percent quarterly increase and the 1.6 percent yearly gain in the previous three months.

The RBA's weighted median was up 0.5 percent on quarter and 1.7 percent on year after adding 0.4 percent on quarter and 1.3 percent on year in the fourth quarter.

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Australia Private Sector Credit Climbs 1.1% In March



Private sector credit in Australia was up 1.1 percent on month in March, the Reserve Bank of Australia said on Thursday - accelerating from 0.4 percent in February.

On a yearly basis, credit jumped 3.6 percent - slowing from 3.9 percent in the previous month.

Housing credit was up 3.0 percent on month and 3.1 percent on year, while personal credit fell 1.4 percent on month and 6.5 percent on year and business credit advanced 2.9 percent on month and 6.3 percent on year.

Broad money was up 2.7 percent on month and 6.3 percent on year.

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Vietnam Manufacturing PMI Falls To 32.7 In April - IHS Marketing



The Vietnam manufacturing sector continued to contract in April, and at a faster rate because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the latest survey from IHS Marketing revealed on Monday with a manufacturing PMI score of 32.7.

That's down from 41.9 in March and it moves further beneath the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

Individually, there were severe declines in output and new orders, while employment was also down at a record pace.

Firms were pessimistic regarding the 12-month outlook.

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Aussie Slightly Down After RBA Decision



The Reserve Bank of Australia kept its benchmark lending rate at 0.25 percent, as expected. Following the announcement, the aussie fell slightly against its major rivals.

The aussie was trading at 68.67 against the yen, 1.6925 against the euro, 0.6440 against the greenback and 1.0627 against the kiwi around 12:34 am ET.

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European Economics Preview: Germany Factory Orders Data Due



Factory orders from Germany and final composite Purchasing Managers' survey from euro area are due on Wednesday, headlining a light day for the European economic news.

At 2.00 am ET, Destatis is set to release Germany's factory orders for March. Economists forecast orders to fall 10 percent on month after falling 1.4 percent in February.

At 3.00 am ET, retail sales figures are due from Hungary and the Czech Republic. The Czech retail sales are expected to fall 9 percent annually, following February's 7.4 percent increase.

At 3.15 am ET, IHS Markit releases Spain's services PMI data. The PMI is seen at 10.0 in April versus 23.0 in March.

At 3.45 am ET, Italy's services PMI data is due. Economists expect the index to decline to 9.0 in April from 17.4 in March. Thereafter, final PMI survey data is due from France and Germany at 3.50 and 3.55 am ET, respectively.

At 4.00 am ET, IHS Markit publishes euro area final composite PMI data. Economists expect the index to drop to 13.5 in April, as initially estimated, from 29.7 in March.

Half an hour later, UK IHS Markit/CIPS construction PMI survey data is due. The construction PMI is forecast to drop to 22.0 in April from 39.3 in March.

At 5.00 am ET, Eurostat releases euro area retail sales data. Sales are forecast to decline 10.5 percent on month in March, reversing a 0.9 percent rise in February.

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China Services PMI Rises To 44.4 In April - Caixin



The services sector in China continued to contract in April, albeit at a slightly slower pace, the latest survey from Caixin showed on Thursday with a Services PMI score of 44.4.

That's up from 43.0 in March, although it remains beneath the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

Individually, total new work fell at a modest rate, although export sales tumbled at a near-record pace. Companies trimmed their staff numbers for the third month in a row.

The survey also showed that the composite index ticked up to 47.6 in April from 46.7 in March.

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Malaysia Jobless Rate Rises In March



Malaysia's unemployment rate rose in March, data from the Department of Statistics showed on Friday.

The jobless rate rose to 3.9 percent in March from 3.3 percent in February. In the same month last year, the unemployment rate was 3.4 percent.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, jobless rate rose to 3.9 percent in March from 3.3 percent in the previous month.

The number of unemployed increased to 610,500 in March from 525,200 in the previous month.

The number of employed decreased to 15.23 million in March from 15.34 million in the prior month.

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New Zealand Electronic Card Spending Plummets In April



The total value of overall electronic spending in New Zealand was down a seasonally adjusted 48 percent or NZ$3.5 billion in April, Statistics New Zealand said on Monday - following the 8.6 percent drop in March.

Spending in the retail industries fell 47 percent (NZ$2.6 billion), while spending in the core retail industries - which excludes the automobile-related industries) fell 44 percent (NZ$2.2 billion).

The non-retail (excluding services) category was down NZ$686 million (47 percent), and the services category fell NZ$200 million (84 percent) in April 2020.

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