US retail sales rose by a slower than expected 0.1% in October at the headline level, with the core readings rising by 0.2%. The import price index fell by 10.5% y/y, due principally to lower imported petroleum prices.

The UK unemployment rate fell to a seven-year low of 5.3% in the three months to September. The number of people out of work fell by 103k between July and September to 1.75m, while total wages rose by 2.0%, down from 3.2% in the previous month, the weakest increase since February.

Meanwhile Europe’s GDP has slowed to 0.3% in the third quarter of the year with Germany and Italy slowing to 0.3% and 0.2% respectively. Smaller nations such as the Netherlands barely grew, whilst Portugal actually stagnated.

Consumer prices in China rose by a lower than expected 1.3% y/y in October, despite a series of interest rate cuts aimed at boosting demand. The Chinese producer price index (PPI) also declined by 5.9% y/y. The PPI has recorded deflation for 44 straight months, showing China’s slowdown is falling on the investment and manufacturing sectors.

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