Quick Overview

• U.S. Retail sales jumped 1.6% -- the largest increase since November as consumers stepped up purchases of vehicles and wide range of goods. January sales were revised up to a 0.5% rise from 0.3%.
  

• U.S. consumer price index was up 0.1% in March and up 2.3% YoY.
  
• U.S. business sales were up 0.3% in February
  
• U.S. Inventories rose 0 .5%
  

• The Mortgage Bankers Association said that its index of mortgage applications fell 9.6% last week
  

• Industrial production in the EU rose 0.7% MoM and up 3.5% YoY
  

• New Zealand retail sales fell 0.6% in February
  

• Germany's cocoa grind saw its third consecutive year-on-year quarterly gain in the first three months of 2010, increasing by 10.31 percent, the association of German confectionery producers BDSI said on Tuesday.
  

• The U.S. DOE said:
  Supplies of crude oil fell 2.2 million barrels 354.0 million barrels.
  Supplies of gasoline fell 1.1 million barrels
  Supplies of heating oil rose 500,000 barrels.
  Refinery use rose from 84.5% to 85.6% of capacity last week.
  Gasoline demand fell 2.8% YoY
  Distillate demand rose 0.4% YoY.

• U.S. foreclosure filings jumped 7% in Q1 of 2010 from the previous quarter, market researcher RealtyTrac said.

• China’s economic growth accelerated to 11.9 per cent in the first quarter