Figures published today show a pick-up in world trade in January. But the growth rate remains slow by pre-crisis standards, and in many areas trade is still contracting.

Preliminary purchasing managers’ surveys for March indicate that the recession in the euro-zone has deepened once more, while the recovery in the US has strengthened. There was a small rise in China’s...

The $10 decline in the price of a barrel of Brent since early February reflects the faltering in the world economy and, most recently, the fresh worries about the euro-zone triggered by the crisis in...

The latest business surveys suggest the pick-up in activity early this year has softened almost everywhere, except the US, as the PMIs dropped back in most advanced and emerging economies in February.