Japan unexpectedly cut its reading of third-quarter economic growth to an annualized 1.3 percent, from a preliminary estimate of 2.2 percent expansion. The revision was driven by drops in business spending and in private inventories.

The gross domestic product (GDP) expanded just 0.3% in July-September and 1.3% annually, the Cabinet Office said on Thursday in a revised estimate.…

Reflecting a substantial increase in fuel prices, the Labor Department released a report today showing a slightly bigger than expected increase in U.S import prices in the month of October.

The import-price index, measuring the cost of goods ranging from Canadian oil to Chinese electronics, rose 0.5% from a month earlier, the Labor Department said earlier today, while economists surveyed expected prices to rise 0.3%.…

China’s retail sales expanded below projections in the month of October, as opposed to the investment and industrial production figures, which were consistent with expectation and indicated a continued stabilization. Weaker than expected retail sales figures might have been because of seasonal factors, noted Nordea Bank in a research report.…