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Regional and state unemployment rates were generally little changed or slightly lower in April. Thirty-nine states recorded unemployment rate decreases, three states and the District of Columbia registered rate increases, and eight states had no rate change, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Forty-six states and the District of Columbia posted unemployment rate decreases from a year earlier, three states reported increases, and one state had no change. The national jobless rate edged up by 0.2 percentage point between March and April to 9.0 percent, but was 0.8 point lower than a year earlier.

The sales price of newly constructed residential buildings in 70 large and medium-sized cities decreased in 9 cities and that of remained the same level in 5 cities comparing with the previous month.

Nearly two thirds (64 percent) of business leaders believe a lack of investment in transport and its supporting infrastructure is stifling UK businesses, according to a survey[1] by the online private jet booking platform, PrivateFly.com.

Consumer confidence fell last week to the lowest level in nine months as the cost of fuel pinched U.S. household budgets.

Employees enrolled in employer-sponsored defined contribution retirement plans consider themselves heavily reliant on their plans for their future financial security – but at the same time, employees are demanding much more help from the plans when it comes to understanding and managing the financial realities of life during retirement. Those are among the key findings of two nationwide surveys of American workers participating in defined contribution (DC) plans and American corporations sponsoring these plans, released today by BlackRock, Inc.

The risks posed by increasing capital flows require a coordinated package of macroeconomic, prudential and structural policies, with capital controls only to be considered as a last resort, according to a new report from the OECD.

Private nonfarm business sector multifactor productivity increased at a 3.2 percent annual rate in 2010, the largest increase recorded in this series which began in 1987, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. The multifactor productivity gain in 2010 reflected a 3.7 percent increase in output and a 0.5 percent increase in the combined inputs of capital and labor. Capital services grew by 0.6 percent, the smallest gain in the series which began in 1987. The combination of fast-rising output and a modest increase in capital services caused output per unit of capital services to jump 3.0 percent, the largest gain since the series began in 1987. Labor input, the combined effect of hours worked and labor composition, increased 0.5 percent in the private nonfarm business sector after falling in the previous two years.

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for France increased 0.9 percent and The Conference Board Coincident Economic Index® (CEI) remained unchanged in March.

The Conference Board Leading Economic Index® (LEI) for the U.S. declined 0.3 percent in April to 114.0 (2004 = 100), following a 0.7 percent increase in March, and a 0.9 percent increase in February.

In the construction sector, seasonally adjusted production fell by 0.3% in the euro area (EA17), but rose by 1.9% in the EU27 in March 2011, compared with the previous month. In February, production decreased by 0.8% in the euro area and rose by 1.4% in the EU27.