Quick Overview

• U.S. housing starts were at an annual rate of 575,000 in Feb, down 5.9% MoM, but up 0.2% YoY
  

• Canada’s manufacturing sales rose 2.4% in January.
  

• YoY Consumer prices in the EU rose 1.4% in February

• The Fed kept the federal funds rate unchanged at 0.125%, as expected.
  
  

• The World Bank raised its forecast for China's growth this year to 9.5%
  
  

• (WSJ) The Bank of Japan decided to loosen monetary policy further by increasing the amount of low-interest loans available to the money market, stepping up its efforts to energize the country's anemic private demand to eradicate deflation.