on Thursday. (DJN) The jobs market in the euro area remained dynamic at the end of last year, as expected, with no uptick in the rate of unemployment in the last month of 2023. Some 6.4% of workers were unemployed in the 20-member currency bloc in December, the same rate as the previous month, according to figures published Thursday by Eurostat, the European Union's statistics agency. (DJN) A private gauge of China's factory activity showed steady expansion in the sector in January, contrasting with the official index, which remained mired in contractionary territory. The China Caixin manufacturing purchasing managers index remained at 50.8 in January , the same rate as in December, according to data released Thursday by Caixin Media Co. and S&P Global. (DJN) Southeast Asian manufacturers seem to have started the year on firmer footing, with a gauge of activity in the region showing growth for the first time in five months, though the specter of rising price pressures and weaker demand still looms over the sector. S&P Global's manufacturing purchasing managers' index, or PMI, for Asean rose to 50.3 in January from 49.7 in December, breaking above the neutral 50-mark separating expansion from contraction. (DJN) South Korea's exports got off to a strong start this year, with shipment growth accelerating in January amid solid demand for semiconductors and other Korean goods overseas. Exports from the economy rose 18.0% from a year earlier to $54.69 billion in January, following a revised 5.0% gain in December, according to preliminary data released by the trade ministry. A higher number of work days during the first month of 2024 also helped drive growth. (DJN) Feedback Loop

This newsletter is compiled by James Christie in San Francisco.

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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

02-01-24 0802ET