Taylor Swift’s China trade boosts Singapore’s GDP

Singapore’s gross domestic product rose 2.7% year-on-year in the first quarter, the Ministry of Trade and Industry said on Friday.

This is faster than the 2.2% rise in the October-December period.

According to MTI, the city’s manufacturing sector grew by 0.8% year-on-year in the first quarter of this year, compared with 1.4% growth in the previous quarter.

Wholesale and retail trade, transportation and storage increased by 2.7% year-on-year (up 1.4% in the previous quarter).

— Charmaine Jacob

South Korea’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in March was 2.8%, up from 2.6% in February.

The labor force participation rate in March was 64.3%, an increase of 0.2 points from the same month last year.

Separately, the ratio of employment to population was 62.4%, an increase of 0.2 points compared to the same period last year.

— Lim Huijie

Oil futures fell on Thursday as concerns about inflation overshadowed worries about a possible Iranian attack on Israel for the time being.

West Texas Intermediate for May delivery fell $1.19, or 1.38%, to settle at $85.02 per barrel. Brent futures for June fell 74 cents, or 0.82%, to settle at $89.74 a barrel.

Oil prices rose more than 1% on Wednesday after Bloomberg News reported that the United States and its allies believe an Iranian attack on Israel is imminent.

However, Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures Group, said the geopolitical risks that had pushed prices higher in the previous session receded on Thursday as an attack had yet to materialize.

— Spencer Kimball

Amazon stock rose 1.7% on Thursday, hitting an all-time high. It hit a record high for the first time since July 2021.

CEO Andy Jassy released his annual shareholder letter on Thursday, vowing to cut costs while accelerating investment in new areas such as artificial intelligence.

New York Fed President John Williams said Thursday he expects inflation to continue slowing this year, but acknowledged the process will not be smooth.

“We expect inflation to continue its gradual recovery to 2%, but as we have seen in recent inflation statistics, there will be a slight bump along the way,” central bank officials said in a speech to bankers in New York. There will be waves,” he said.

The comments came a day after the March consumer price index showed inflation was running at an annual rate of 3.5%, well above the Fed’s 2% target. He noted progress in inflation since its peak, which exceeded 9% in June 2022, but said the Fed’s job is not done yet.

“The economy has come a long way to achieve a better balance and reach the 2% inflation target. But we still have a long way to go to achieve a better balance and reach the 2% inflation target. “I am committed to achieving maximum employment and long-term price stability,” he said.

— Jeff Cox

The producer price index rose 0.2% in March as investors tried to navigate mixed inflation signals. Economists compiled by Dow Jones expected the PPI to rise by 0.3%. Core CPI rose 0.2%, as expected.

— Fred Imbert