What's news

Civil aviation industry sees robust growth

China's civil aviation sector reported steady expansion as well as continuous high safety standards in the first 10 months of the year, official data showed. The total transport turnover of the industry stood at 107.75 billion ton-kilometers from January to October, up 7.5 percent year-on-year, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China. In breakdown, 554 million passenger trips were completed during the period, up 8.3 percent over the same period last year. Cargo turnover processed by the industry rose 1 percent year-on-year to reach 6.11 million metric tons in the first 10 months, with that of October alone climbing 5.3 percent year-on-year to 665,000 tons, up 1.2 percentage points from September.

Convenience stores post 6.3% rise in retail sales

Retail sales at China's convenience stores grew 6.3 percent year-on-year during the first three quarters of the year, according to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Commerce. The growth rate was fastest among all major types of retail formats, the survey showed. The country's convenience-store market has been booming during the first three quarters with accelerated sales growth and rapid network expansion. Some 12,000 new convenience stores were opened in the country during the period. Leading convenience-store companies, especially foreign firms, have hiked their investment in the Chinese market. Currently, a majority of provincial capitals have international convenience-store brands.

Turnover on 'new third board' hits $9.92b

Turnover on China's National Equities Exchange and Quotations, also known as the "new third board," reached 69.56 billion yuan ($9.92 billion) from the start of the year to Nov 15. The exchange was launched in early 2013 to supplement the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges to serve small and medium-sized enterprises. It is seen as an easier financing channel for small businesses, with low costs and simple listing procedures.

US import and export prices drop in October

US import and export prices decreased in October, the US Department of Labor reported. The price index for US imports fell 0.5 percent in October, after rising 0.1 percent in September and declining 0.6 percent in August. The decrease in October was driven by lower petroleum prices. The US import price index declined 3.0 percent from October 2018 to October 2019. The decrease was the largest over-the-year decline since the index fell 3.7 percent during the period ended July 2016. Import fuel prices declined 2.9 percent in October after increasing 1.5 percent the previous month. A 3.7-percent drop in petroleum prices drove the October decrease, more than offsetting a 32.0-percent increase in natural gas prices.

Manufacturing orders growth declines in UK

Exporting manufacturers' indicators in Britain have undergone a sharp drop in the third quarter of 2019, according to a quarterly report. The Quarterly International Trade Outlook for the third quarter of 2019, released by British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) and DHL, an international logistics giant, showed that the balance of exporting manufacturers' orders growth in the UK fell to negative field in the third quarter. In terms of an increase in export orders, it fell to negative 1 percent, down from 9 percent in the previous quarter. Regarding the domestic orders growth, the balance dropped to negative 4 percent in the third quarter, down from 8 percent in the second quarter.

Bulgaria's jobless rate hits record low in Q3

The unemployment rate in Bulgaria fell to 3.7 percent in the third quarter of 2019, reaching a record low level, the Labor Force Survey of the National Statistical Institute showed. This is the lowest rate registered since 2003 when the survey has been conducted according to this methodology. In the third quarter, there were 125,400 people registered as unemployed in Bulgaria, of whom 56.5 percent were men and 43.5 percent women, the NSI said. Among all unemployed persons, 14.8 percent had attained tertiary education, 44.7 percent had completed upper secondary education, and 40.5 percent had at most lower secondary education, the NSI said.

French unemployment rate up on quarterly basis

France's unemployment rate stood at 8.6 percent in the third quarter of 2019, up by 0.1 percentage point from a quarter earlier, national statistics bureau Insee data showed. Compared to the second quarter when jobless rate dropped to its lowest since 2008, the number of job seekers increased by 10,000 to 2.5 million people in France, excluding overseas department of Mayotte in the July-September period. On a yearly basis, however, the jobless rate fell by 0.5 percentage point, Insee said.

S. Korea reports trade surplus for 93 months

South Korea posted a trade surplus for 93 straight months through October despite the continued fall in export, customs office data showed. Trade surplus amounted to $5.3 billion in October, according to the Korea Customs Service. The trade balance stayed in black for 93 months since February 2012, but the surplus reduced compared with the previous month. Export, which takes up about half of the export-driven economy, retreated 14.8 percent over the year to $46.7 billion in October, while import diminished 14.6 percent to $41.4 billion.

Mongolia's foreign shipments surge 7.1%

Mongolia's foreign trade volume expanded 7.1 percent year-on-year to $11.6 billion in the first 10 months of this year, the country's National Statistics Office (NSO) said. Exports climbed 9.8 percent year-on-year to $6.5 billion, while imports grew 3.9 percent to $5.1 billion, the NSO data showed. Mining products accounted for more than 80 percent of the total exports, the NSO said, noting that a significant increase in revenue from coal and gold exports largely contributed to the overall growth.