Quick Overview

• The producer price index rose 1.3% in February, while the core rate rose 0.4%, the Labor Department reported.
  

• The U.S. Treasury said that foreign investors bought $115.0 billion of U.S. securities in January while U.S. investors bought $17.6 billion of foreign securities.
  

• The New York Federal Reserve's index of manufacturing dropped from 24.4 to 1.9 in March.
  

• The Philadelphia Federal Reserve's regional index of manufacturing dropped from 0.6 to 0.2 in March.
  
  

• ExFederal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Thursday there was a risk that rising defaults in subprime mortgage markets could spill over into other economic sectors.
  

• Australia's unemployment rate increased from 4.5% to 4.6% in February.
  

• YoY Consumer prices in the Euro area were up 1.8% in February
  

• The Swiss National Bank increased its key interest rate from 2.00% to 2.25%.