Economic Calendar - Currencies

The activity index of the tertiary industry helps to understand an overall picture of industrial activities, inclusive of all business categories in the tertiary industry. The composite index is a general indicator in which the indexes to express the activity in respective business categories are consolidated with weight in terms of the scale of relative importance of each business category (value added). Wholesale Trade is the most important sector and accounts for 15 percent of tertiary activity, followed by Medical, Health Care & Welfare and Living & Amusement-related Services (12 percent each), Information & Communications (11 percent), Retail Trade and Transport & Postal Activities (10 percent each), Finance and Insurance (9 percent), Real Estate (8 percent), Business-related Services (7 percent), and Electricity, Gas, Heat Supply & Water and Goods Rental and Leasing (3 percent each).

In Switzerland, the Producer Price Index (PPI) is officially named “Producer and Import Price Index”. Producer price index measures the price development of goods that are produced and sold by enterprises operating within the country and the import price index measures the price development of imported goods. Only domestic sales are considered for the producer price index when combining the indices.

In Switzerland, the producer price index (which measures the price development of goods that are produced and sold by enterprises operating within the country) and the import price index (which measures the price development of imported goods) are combined into the price index for the whole range of goods. Only domestic sales are considered for the producer price index when combining the indices.

The government budget balance is the difference between government revenues and expenses. The budget is balanced when outlays equal to receipts, the country reports budget surplus when revenues are higher than expenses and deficit when expenses exceed the revenues.

In Brazil, interest rate decisions are taken by The Central Bank of Brazil's Monetary Policy Committee (COPOM). The official interest rate is the Special System of Clearance and Custody rate (SELIC) which is the overnight lending rate.

In Canada, a housing start is defined as the beginning of construction work on the building where the dwelling unit will be located. This can be described in 2 ways: usually, the stage when the concrete has been poured for the whole of the footing around the structure; or an equivalent stage where a basement will not be part of the structure.

The Business NZ Performance of Services Index (PSI) is a composite index based on the diffusion indexes for sales, new orders, delivered, inventories and employment. A reading above 50 indicates an expansion of the Services sector compared to the previous month; below 50 represents a contraction; while 50 indicates no change.

In New Zealand, the food price index (FPI) measures the changes in prices that households pay for food.