No Canadian data today.
In the U.S., inflation rose 0.3% in March driven by highly volatile food and fuel prices. That’s down 0.1% from February. The core number for March is 0.2%. Y/Y for the 12 months ended in February, U.S. core inflation clocked in at 2.3%, just above the Fed’s 2% target.
The initial reading of U.S. consumer sentiment for April shows confidence is cooling. The University of Michigan’s monthly survey dropped to 75.7 from 76.2 in March. Slowing employment growth, declining stock prices and the rising cost of gasoline are getting the blame.
An international note of interest:
China’s economic growth – which some credit for saving the global economy from complete collapse – has slowed to 8.1% for Q1, its slowest pace in 3 years. That, and the risk of inflation, prompted Premier Wen Jiabao to reassure that Beijing will continue to watch and make adjustments as needed.
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