In Australian economic and market news this week, new datashow that unemployment is holding fairly steady. The latest figures reveal that unemployment rate rose by 0.1 percentage points to 3.8 per cent in March.
New data on inflation in the United States was stronger than expected for the third month in a row. Pressures on the cost of fuel and rents pushed overall consumer prices up by 0.4 per cent in March, and by 3.5 per cent over the year (up from 3.2 per cent in February).
In recent weeks economic and market discussion has moved to a greater acceptance that monetary policy settings in the developed world, including Australia, may not loosen anytime soon.
