Headlines

Russian services activity shrinks for third month running in Dec -PMI

Russian services activity shrinks for third month running in Dec -PMI

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Activity in Russia’s services industry shrank for the..

Oil set to end turbulent 2022 modestly higher

Oil set to end turbulent 2022 modestly higher

By Florence Tan and Emily Chow SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil prices edged up on Fr..

Bahamas regulator holds FTX assets pending delivery to customers, creditors

Bahamas regulator holds FTX assets pending delivery to customers, creditors

(Reuters) – The Securities Commission of the Bahamas said on Thursday that it ..

UK’s Sunak to halve support that helps businesses pay fuel bills -The Times

UK’s Sunak to halve support that helps businesses pay fuel bills -The Times

(Reuters) – British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is poised to halve financial su..

Southwest cancels thousands more flights; U.S. government vows scrutiny

Southwest cancels thousands more flights; U.S. government vows scrutiny

By David Shepardson and Alexandra Alper (Reuters) -Southwest Airlines came under fir..

Wall St stocks fall, bond yields rise as China drops quarantine rule

Wall St stocks fall, bond yields rise as China drops quarantine rule

By Sinéad Carew NEW YORK (Reuters) – The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq closed low..

Risking death at sea, Rohingya Muslims seek safety in Indonesia

Risking death at sea, Rohingya Muslims seek safety in Indonesia

By Hidayatullah Tahjuddin PIDIE, Indonesia (Reuters) – Crying with relief afte..

Spain’s November retail sales fall 0.6% on year

Spain’s November retail sales fall 0.6% on year

(Reuters) – Spanish retail sales fell 0.6% in November from a year earlier on ..

Italy’s rightist government tightens rules for migrant rescues

Italy’s rightist government tightens rules for migrant rescues

ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s rightist government has approved measures to fi..

German exporters prepare for a challenging 2023BERLIN (Reuters) – German exporters have modest hopes for next year, anticipating problems at major customers in China because of climbing COVID infections and rising prices making U.S. buyers cautious, the Federation of German Wholesale and Foreign Trade (BGA) said. The United States and China are Germany’s most important trading partners. “There will be no slump in exports in 2023, but we cannot expect a steep rise either,” BGA President Dirk Jandura told Reuters in an interview published on Thursday. “It would already be a success if we manage a ‘black zero’ in real terms.” After Beijing abandoned its zero-COVID policy early this month, the virus is spreading largely unchecked across the country of 1.4 billion. While the Chinese economy is expected to see a sharp rebound later next year, it is in for a rough ride in the coming weeks and months as workers increasingly fall ill. “We are also worried about the U.S.” Jandura said. “We have a stronger euro again because of the ECB interest rate increases. That’s not going to boost exports.” He added that higher interest rates were already having an impact in the United States where they have risen further, especially on the construction industry. To tame soaring inflation, the European Central Bank and the U.S. Federal Reserve have raised interest rates at the fastest pace in decades and both are expected to do more next year. German exporters had not been able to fully process all orders in recent months due to supply shortages, Jandura said. That left them with comfortably filled order books and the anticipated easing of supply bottlenecks should create a catch-up effect. German exports probably have risen at a double-digit percentage rate in 2022, mainly thanks to higher prices, with goods volumes up by “low single digits,” Jandura said. Last year, exports rose 14% and imports grew 17%, reducing Germany’s trade surplus for the fifth year in a row. (Reporting by Rene Wagner, writing by Kirsti Knolle; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)

German exporters prepare for a challenging 2023BERLIN (Reuters) – German exporters have modest hopes for next year, anticipating problems at major customers in China because of climbing COVID infections and rising prices making U.S. buyers cautious, the Federation of German Wholesale and Foreign Trade (BGA) said. The United States and China are Germany’s most important trading partners. “There will be no slump in exports in 2023, but we cannot expect a steep rise either,” BGA President Dirk Jandura told Reuters in an interview published on Thursday. “It would already be a success if we manage a ‘black zero’ in real terms.” After Beijing abandoned its zero-COVID policy early this month, the virus is spreading largely unchecked across the country of 1.4 billion. While the Chinese economy is expected to see a sharp rebound later next year, it is in for a rough ride in the coming weeks and months as workers increasingly fall ill. “We are also worried about the U.S.” Jandura said. “We have a stronger euro again because of the ECB interest rate increases. That’s not going to boost exports.” He added that higher interest rates were already having an impact in the United States where they have risen further, especially on the construction industry. To tame soaring inflation, the European Central Bank and the U.S. Federal Reserve have raised interest rates at the fastest pace in decades and both are expected to do more next year. German exporters had not been able to fully process all orders in recent months due to supply shortages, Jandura said. That left them with comfortably filled order books and the anticipated easing of supply bottlenecks should create a catch-up effect. German exports probably have risen at a double-digit percentage rate in 2022, mainly thanks to higher prices, with goods volumes up by “low single digits,” Jandura said. Last year, exports rose 14% and imports grew 17%, reducing Germany’s trade surplus for the fifth year in a row. (Reporting by Rene Wagner, writing by Kirsti Knolle; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)

BERLIN (Reuters) – German exporters have modest hopes for next year, anticipat..