Last week’s highlights

Japan GDP rises 21.4% in Q3

There was some good news from Japan with the latest economic data showing a rebound in economic activity.

Official data for the third quarter showed that the nation’s GDP rose by 21.4% during the three months ending September. This exceeded the expectations of an increase of 18.9%.

In the previous quarter, Japan’s GDP fell by 28.8%. On a quarterly basis, Japan’s GDP expanded by 5.0% which also beat forecasts of a 4.4% increase.

Capital expenditure was weaker, however, down by 3.4% during the period. It continues to fall after a 4.5% decline previously.

UK inflation rises to a three-month high

The latest inflation data from the UK showed that consumer prices rose to a three-month high in October. The gains were driven by an increase in higher clothing and food prices.

Headline inflation rose by 0.7% on the year, climbing more than the 0.5% increase from the previous month.

Excluding food and energy prices, the core inflation rate rose by 1.5%. Economists forecast the core inflation rate would remain unchanged at 1.3%.

Despite the increase in consumer prices, inflation in the UK still remains well below the BoE’s 2% inflation target rate.

Australia unemployment rate rises to 7%

The latest labor market data from Australia saw the national unemployment rate rising to 7.0% in October.

The official data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics came out below expectations. The general forecasts were for an increase in the unemployment rate to 7.2% for the period.

In September, Australia’s unemployment rate rose to 6.9%. The economy added 178,800 jobs during the month and managed to beat expectations of a 30,000 job loss.

The gains came mostly from full-time jobs which added 97,000, while part-time jobs rose to 81,800.

Existing home sales spike in October

Data from the National Association of Realtors showed that existing home sales spiked to a 14-year high in October.