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The new service was first previewed at OpenWorld in October last year, and is based on the Linux Foundation's open source Hyperledger Fabric platform – a collaboration tool for building Blockchain distributed ledger business networks, such as smart contract technology.
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Khaleej Times
2 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
US weekly jobless claims at seven-month high; trade deficit posts record contraction
The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits increased to a seven-month high last week, pointing to softening labor market conditions amid mounting economic headwinds from tariffs. The report from the Labour Department on Thursday also continued to show workers losing their jobs having a tough time landing new opportunities as uncertainty caused by President Donald Trump's aggressive trade policy leaves employers reluctant to increase headcount. Economists said technical difficulties adjusting the data at the start of summer could have contributed to the second straight weekly increase in unemployment claims. Still, they said the data offered some evidence of labor market strains. "We won't dismiss the rise in claims over the last two weeks, which may be signaling weakening labor market conditions in response to the Trump administration's tariff policies and uncertainty," said Nancy Vanden Houten, lead U.S. economist at Oxford Economics. "However, seasonal quirks might have contributed to the rise in claims." Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 247,000 for the week ended May 31, the highest level since last October. Economists had forecast 235,000 claims for the latest week. There was a sharp rise in unadjusted claims in Kentucky, likely related to layoffs in the motor vehicle industry amid duties on imported parts. There was also a notable increase in filings in Tennessee, which also has motor vehicle assembly plants. Claims surged in the prior week in Michigan, attributed to layoffs in the manufacturing industry. But companies are generally hoarding workers after struggling to find labor during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The Federal Reserve's Beige Book report on Wednesday showed "comments about uncertainty delaying hiring were widespread," noting that "all districts described lower labor demand, citing declining hours worked and overtime, hiring pauses and staff reduction plans." It said while some districts reported layoffs in certain sectors, "these layoffs were not pervasive." An Institute for Supply Management survey also made similar observations, reporting steady employment in the services sector in May, but also pointing out that "higher scrutiny is being placed on all jobs that need to be filled." U.S. stocks were trading lower. The dollar slipped against a basket of currencies. U.S. Treasury yields fell. The number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, slipped 3,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.904 million during the week ending May 24, the claims report showed. The elevation in the so-called continuing claims aligns with consumers' ebbing confidence in the labor market. The claims data have no bearing on the Labour Department's closely watched employment report for May, scheduled to be released on Friday, as it falls outside the survey period. Nonfarm payrolls likely increased by 130,000 jobs last month after advancing by 177,000 in April, a Reuters survey of economists showed. The unemployment rate is forecast being unchanged at 4.2%. "A gradual but genuine slackening of the labor market is underway," said Oliver Allen, senior U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. There was, however, some welcome news on the economy. A separate report from the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis showed the trade deficit narrowed sharply in April, with imports decreasing by the most on record as the front-running of goods ahead of tariffs ebbed, which could provide a lift to economic growth this quarter. The trade gap contracted by a record 55.5% to $61.6 billion, the lowest level since September 2023. The goods trade deficit eased by a record 46.2% to $87.4 billion, the lowest level since October 2023. A rush to beat import duties helped to widen the trade deficit in the first quarter, which accounted for a large part of the 0.2% annualized rate of decline in gross domestic product last quarter. The contraction in the deficit, at face value, suggests that trade could significantly add to GDP this quarter, but much would depend on the state of inventories. "The collapse in the trade gap in April, although unlikely to be sustained, points to a massive trade addition to GDP growth and, if the offset to the import swing is not measured in inventories, second-quarter measured GDP growth could be eye-popping, possibly in the area of 5%, but as meaningless as the first-quarter's decline in output," said Conrad DeQuadros, senior economic advisor at Brean Capital. Imports decreased by a record 16.3% to $351.0 billion in April. Goods imports slumped by a record 19.9% to $277.9 billion, held down by a $33.0 billion decline in imports of consumer goods, mostly pharmaceutical preparations from Ireland. Imports of cellphones and other household goods fell $3.5 billion. Industrial supplies and materials imports declined $23.3 billion, reflecting decreases in finished metal shapes and other precious metals. Motor vehicle, parts and engines imports fell $8.3 billion with passenger cars accounting for much of the decline. The front-loading of imports is probably not over. Higher duties for most countries have been postponed until July, while those for Chinese goods have been delayed until mid-August. The Trump administration had given U.S. trade partners until Wednesday to make their "best offers" to avoid other punishing import levies from taking effect in early July. Exports rose 3.0% to $289.4 billion, an all-time high. Goods exports increased 3.4% to a record $190.5 billion, boosted by a $10.4 billion jump in industrial supplies and materials, mostly finished metal shapes, nonmonetary gold and crude oil. Capital goods exports advanced $1.0 billion, lifted by computers. But exports of motor vehicles, parts and engines fell $3.3 billion, held down by passenger cars as well as trucks, buses and special purpose vehicles. Exports of services increased $2.1 billion to $98.9 billion, lifted by travel, despite reports of decreased tourist visits because of the trade tensions and an immigration crackdown.
Khaleej Times
2 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
Procter & Gamble to cut 7,000 jobs to rein in costs as tariff uncertainty looms
Procter Gamble said on Thursday it would cut 7,000 jobs, or about 6%, of its total workforce over the next two years, as part of a new restructuring plan to counter uneven consumer demand and higher costs due to tariff uncertainty. The world's largest consumer goods company also plans to exit some product categories and brands in certain markets, executives said at a Deutsche Bank Consumer Conference in Paris, adding the program could likely include some divestitures without giving detail. The Pampers maker's two-year restructuring plan comes when consumer spending is expected to remain pressured this year, and global consumer goods makers including PG and Unilever brace for a further hit to demand from even higher prices. "This is not a new approach, rather an intentional acceleration of the current win in the increasingly challenging environment in which we compete," executives said. President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs on trading partners have roiled global markets and led to fears of a recession in the U.S., the biggest market for PG. The company imports raw ingredients, packaging materials and some finished products into the U.S. from China. Trump's trade war has cost companies more than $34 billion in lost sales and higher costs, a Reuters analysis showed, a toll that is expected to rise. In April, the Tide detergent maker said it would raise prices on some products and that it was prepared to pull every lever in its arsenal to mitigate the impact of tariffs. Pricing and cost cuts were the main levers, CFO Andre Schulten had said then. On Thursday, Schulten and PG's operations head Shailesh Jejurikar acknowledged that the geopolitical environment was "unpredictable" and that consumers were facing "greater uncertainty." The company had about 108,000 employees as of June 30, 2024, and said the job cuts would account for roughly 15% of its non-manufacturing workforce. PG added that the restructuring plan would help simplify the organizational structure by "making roles broader" and "teams smaller". The plans to divest certain brands will also help adjust its supply chain in order to reduce costs, PG said. (Reporting by Rishabh Jaiswal and Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman, Rashmi Aich and Sriraj Kalluvila)
Zawya
2 hours ago
- Zawya
Dollar slips after ECB hints at rates pause; US data weigh
The dollar slipped against the euro on Thursday after the European Central Bank hinted at a pause in its year-long policy easing cycle and U.S. data pointed to softening labor market conditions amid mounting economic headwinds from tariffs. The ECB cut interest rates for the eighth time in a year on Thursday, acknowledging inflation was under control and turning more pessimistic about economic prospects amid risks of a trade war with the United States. While not confirming a pause, the central bank said it was now well-positioned to cope with global economic uncertainty, as market bets grew on a summer break in its year-long easing cycle. "With today's cut and the current level of interest rates... I think we are getting to the end of a monetary policy cycle that was responding to compounded shocks, including COVID, including the war in Ukraine, the illegitimate war in Ukraine, and the energy crisis," ECB President Christine Lagarde said. The euro rose 0.5% to $1.1473, a fresh six-week high against the dollar, not far from the more than 3-year high of $1.1573 touched in April. "The euro-dollar has taken off here in response to Lagarde saying the ECB is getting towards the end of its rate cutting cycle," said Shaun Osborne, chief currency strategist at Scotiabank. The dollar's softer tone was an extension of its recent weakness, with the U.S. currency down nearly 10% against the euro for the year. "This just broadly reflects the softening in the broader dollar sentiment here and may well continue into non-farm payrolls tomorrow," Osborne said. "We are also seeing a little bit of volatility around news of President Trump talking to Xi, in a first sign of high-level communication between the White House and Beijing in quite some time," Osborne said. Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday held talks with Donald Trump by phone, China's state-run news agency Xinhua reported, as bilateral relations have been strained by trade disputes. The dollar also came under pressure after data showed the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits last week increased for a second straight week, pointing to softening labor market conditions amid mounting economic headwinds from tariffs. The claims data have no bearing on the Labor Department's closely watched employment report for May, scheduled to be released on Friday, as it falls outside the survey period. Nonfarm payrolls likely increased by 130,000 jobs last month after advancing by 177,000 in April, a Reuters survey of economists showed. The unemployment rate is forecast being unchanged at 4.2%. "Evidence of a cooling in labour markets is beginning to build, lowering expectations ahead of tomorrow's non-farm payrolls report and putting downward pressure on yields," Karl Schamotta, chief market strategist at Corpay, said. Markets have been rattled since Trump announced a slate of tariffs on countries around the world on April 2, only to pause some and declare new ones, leading investors to look for alternatives to U.S. assets. Investors remain worried about U.S. trade negotiations and the lack of progress in hashing out deals ahead of an early July deadline. Elsewhere, the Hong Kong dollar was at 7.846 per U.S. dollar, about the closest it has been to 7.85 - the weak end of its trading band against the U.S. dollar - since August 2023, according to LSEG data. The dollar was 0.3% higher against the yen at 143.25 yen. Sterling was 0.3% higher against the dollar on Thursday. The United Kingdom is the only country to have struck a trade deal with the Trump administration and was spared from higher U.S. steel and aluminium tariffs, though analysts question how beneficial those factors are. Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation, was 0.5% lower on the day at $104,021. (Reporting by Saqib Iqbal Ahmed; Additional reporting by Ankur Banerjee in Singapore and Lucy Raitano in London; Editing by Jamie Freed, Amanda Cooper, Alex Richardson and Toby Chopra)
