Thread: Economic News from InstaForex

Ahead of the release of the U.K. industrial production report for December at 4:30 am ET Thursday, the pound showed mixed trading against its major counterparts. While the pound gained against the euro, it fell versus the dollar, yen and the franc. At 4:25 am ET, the pound traded at 1.6045 against the dollar, 0.8492 against the euro, 132.80 against the yen and 1.5449 against the franc.

News are provided by InstaForex.

The dollar fell further versus other major currencies on Friday, as popular unrest among strategic U.S. allies has fueled concerns about the nation's role in the Middle East.

Just one week after civil demonstrations toppled Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, the leadership in Bahrain fired on unarmed protesters in an effort to quell the uprising there.

Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was not backing away from the central bank's commitment to support the economy with massive bond purchases.

Speaking to finance ministers in France, Bernanke said emerging nations have benefited from the easy monetary policy adopted by developed economies.

He urged China to let its currency float in the open market, and to focus on improving domestic demand rather than rely on the U.S. consumer for growth.

Earlier in the day, China raised the reserve requirements for its banks, hoping to contain inflation in the world's most robust major economy.

Meanwhile, consumer prices leveled off a bit in Canada last month.

Stripping out volatile energy prices, Canada's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose a tame 1.7 percent in the 12 months to January, identical to the increase in December.

The Bank of Canada's closely-watched core index advanced 1.4 percent annually in January, following a 1.5 percent rise in December.

Still, with commodity prices on the rise, the dollar hovered near this week's 2-year low of C$0.9814 versus the resource-linked loonie.

Versus the euro, the dollar dropped a penny to a nearly 2-week low of $1.3675.

The buck pulled back from a monthly high against the yen, slipping to Y83.13.

Members of the Japanese central bank's policy board felt more confident of the economic recovery last month amid signs of a rebound in exports, meeting notes of the January policy meeting showed.

Bank of Japan policymakers also felt the negative effects of the removal of government subsidies would wane, lifting the economy to "a moderate recovery path."

News are provided by InstaForex.

Following the release of Canada's industrial product price and raw materials price indexes-both for January at 8:30 am ET, the Canadian dollar remained stronger against its major counterparts. The loonie is presently trading at 0.9722 against the US dollar, 1.3442 against the euro and 84.31 versus the yen.

News are provided by InstaForex.

German insolvency courts reported 13,454 insolvencies in December, 1% less than December last year, the Federal Statistical Office said Thursday.

The total number of corporate insolvencies fell 1.9% year-on-year to 2,534, while insolvencies of consumers fell 0.8%.

In 2010, altogether 168,458 insolvencies were registered, representing an annual increase of 3.4%. While corporate insolvencies fell 2.1%, consumer insolvencies climbed 4.8% compared to 2009.

News are provided by InstaForex.