US employers added just 29,000 jobs in September, far fewer than expected, cooling bets on an October Federal Reserve rate rise and lifting stocks on both sides of the Atlantic, with the Nasdaq 100 closing at a record. European governments agreed to release 50 million barrels of diesel from emergency stocks, keeping Brent crude around $100, while in Spain Congress struck down the government’s housing decrees, including a 2% cap on rent rises.
Spain
Congress strikes down the housing decrees, ending the rent and eviction measures. Junts joined PP, Vox and UPN to reject both government decrees, by 178 votes to 172 and 184 to 166, so they are repealed immediately. That ends the suspension of evictions of vulnerable households, the automatic renewal and extension of rental contracts and the 2% cap on annual rent rises, leaving tenants with the previous rules; Junts argued the measures would shrink rental supply and push prices up, while the defeat has raised talk of an early general election. (El Ideal Gallego / Europa Press, elDiario.es, Moncloa.com)
Record September for jobs, but registered unemployment rises. Spain added 92,327 Social Security contributors in September, the best September on record, taking the average to about 22.43 million, with foreign workers above 3.6 million. Registered unemployment, however, rose by about 23,600 to roughly 2.38 million, still the lowest for the month since 2008; the government attributes both movements to the extraordinary regularisation of migrants, as newly legal workers sign up with employment offices while looking for jobs. (elDiario.es, El Progreso)
Catalonia
Employment tops four million again in the best September on record. Catalonia gained 38,014 Social Security contributors in September (+0.96%), reaching 4,003,234, up 3.61% on a year earlier, helped by more than 83,000 workers who joined through the migrant regularisation. Registered unemployment edged up by 604 people to 330,072, about 2.5% higher than a year ago, with Barcelona the only province where it fell during the month. (NacióDigital, betevé)
Car sales rise 11.4% as electrified models take the lead. Catalonia registered 12,873 new cars in September, up from 11,551 a year earlier, according to industry body Anfac, with electrified and alternative-fuel models up 29.7% to more than 10,600 units. Pure diesel registrations fell 61.7% to just 125 cars and petrol models dropped 29.4%, a shift that reflects fuel above €2 a litre and purchase incentives. (El Nacional, Diari de Tarragona)
France
Europe backs the French plan to release diesel from emergency stocks. EU countries agreed on Friday to a French proposal to release 50 million barrels of diesel, part of it within 20 days, alongside 50 million barrels of crude from International Energy Agency members, after a G7 videoconference chaired by President Emmanuel Macron; it was not immediately clear whether every G7 country backed the exact volumes. The move follows US pressure and talk in Washington of a ban on US diesel exports, and extra supply could ease pump prices for diesel, which feed into transport and food costs. (Reuters / Euronext, Kitco)
Inflation jumps to 3.4% as borrowing costs stay high. French inflation rose to 3.4% in September from 2.6% in August, according to Eurostat’s flash estimate, while the extra yield France pays over Germany on 10-year debt hit its widest since 2012 this week after the 2027 budget plan, which freezes public-sector pay and most pensions. The CAC 40 recovered 0.8% to about 7,897 points on Friday, but higher bond yields still raise the state’s interest bill and can feed through to loan rates for households and firms. (Euronews, FXStreet, ANSA)
United Kingdom
Gilt yields ease and the FTSE 100 edges up, but the week is still the worst since April. The FTSE 100 rose about 0.3% to around 10,461 on Friday and the 10-year gilt yield slipped to about 5.33%, a day after reaching its highest level since 2007 while the 30-year yield broke 6%. Housebuilders recovered about 1% after a 5% slide, but banks headed for their biggest weekly fall since March and IG Group dropped 22% after cutting its revenue growth forecast; high gilt yields keep pressure on fixed-rate mortgage costs. (Finimize, ANSA)
Germany
Government set to raise its 2026 growth forecast to 1.3%. Berlin’s autumn projection will lift expected growth this year to 1.3% from 0.5% and next year’s to 1.1% from 0.9%, according to a government source cited by Reuters, with official figures due next week. The upgrade rests mainly on state spending on infrastructure and defence, while German inflation rose to 3.3% in September, according to Eurostat’s flash estimate, squeezing household purchasing power. (Reuters, Euronews)
DAX rebounds about 1.2% as chipmakers rally. The DAX closed at 25,231 points on Friday, trimming its weekly loss to about 0.7% after dipping below 25,000 for the first time since July, as the weak US jobs report, lower oil prices and easing bond yields calmed rate fears. Infineon jumped more than 8% on the back of record-setting US tech stocks, while Kion and Auto1 fell sharply. (dpa-AFX / Ariva, ANSA)
Italy
Bond spread narrows and Milan recovers 0.5%. After a volatile session in which it briefly topped 125 basis points, the gap between Italian and German 10-year yields closed at about 115, with the BTP yield falling to around 4.6%. The FTSE MIB gained 0.49% to 50,483 points, led by chipmakers STMicroelectronics and Technoprobe, while banks such as UniCredit and BPER slipped; a narrower spread eases the cost of financing Italy’s large public debt. (ANSA, Soldionline)
Portugal
Most pensions on track to rise faster than inflation in 2027. Under the legal update formula, pensions up to €1,074 a month, which cover the majority of retirees, rise above inflation when average GDP growth over the previous two years is between 2% and 3%, and with the economy growing 2.5% year on year in the second quarter, only a sharp third-quarter contraction would prevent it. The exact increase will be set once third-quarter GDP and November inflation data are known. (ECO, Executive Digest)
United States
Hiring stalls at 29,000 jobs, cooling bets on a Fed rate rise. Employers added just 29,000 jobs in September, far below the roughly 90,000 forecast, and July and August were revised down by a combined 60,000, the Labor Department said; unemployment stood at 4.2% and average hourly pay rose only 0.1% on the month and 3.0% on the year. Markets now see roughly a one-in-five chance of a quarter-point Federal Reserve hike at the end of October, down from nearly two in three a week ago, and lower Treasury yields could bring some relief to borrowers after yields hit their highest since 2002 this week. (BLS, Finimize, Rallies)
Stocks rally and the Nasdaq 100 hits a record, but Nike slumps. The S&P 500 rose about 0.7% to 7,723 and the Nasdaq Composite about 1.2%, led by Nvidia, with the Nasdaq 100 closing at a record, while the Dow gained about 0.5% but still lost roughly 1.3% over the week. Nike fell about 8% after quarterly revenue of $11.2 billion missed estimates, it forecast a high-single-digit revenue decline for fiscal 2027 and announced a restructuring aimed at $2.5 billion in savings that will cut jobs. (investingLive, Rallies, 24/7 Wall St., Tekedia)
Canada
Loonie slips to about 70 US cents. The Canadian dollar weakened to around C$1.424 per US dollar, or 70.2 US cents, on Thursday, down from about C$1.40 earlier in September, pressured by the widening gap between US and Canadian bond yields and broad US dollar strength. A weaker loonie makes imported goods and travel to the United States more expensive for Canadians, while helping exporters. (Reuters, Investing.com)
Mexico
Remittances fall 3.6% in August, ending a six-month rise. Mexico received $5.45 billion from workers abroad in August, according to Banxico, as the number of transfers fell 6.4% while the average amount rose 3% to $412. Remittances still totalled $41.8 billion in January–August, up 2.2% on a year earlier; they are a key source of income for millions of Mexican households. (El Financiero, EFE / Infobae)
Peso weakens to its lowest since December. The peso closed Thursday at about 18.29 per dollar, its fourth straight day of losses and its weakest level since December 2025, as rising US yields and higher oil prices lifted the dollar against most Latin American currencies. A weaker peso makes imported goods and dollar debts more expensive. (N+, Ámbito)
Brazil
Ibovespa jumps above 192,000 on the eve of the election. Brazil’s main stock index rose about 2.6% to 192,115 points on Friday, the last session before Sunday’s first round of the presidential election, helped by Petrobras after a new oil discovery and by hopes of a Fed pause after the weak US jobs data. The dollar was little changed at about R$5.22, keeping the real near its weakest in weeks, which tends to raise the cost of imported goods and fuel. (InfoMoney, BPMoney)
Industrial output falls 0.6% in August. Factory production dropped 0.6% from July and 1.2% from a year earlier, according to statistics agency IBGE, disappointing forecasts of growth and interrupting a recovery. Weak industry adds to signs that high interest rates are weighing on activity and jobs. (Estadão Conteúdo / DGABC, InfoMoney)
Argentina
Central bank buys $93 million as reserves top $48 billion again. The central bank bought $93 million in the official market on Thursday and gross reserves rebounded by about $2.2 billion to $48.3 billion after month-end accounting effects, while the wholesale dollar rose 7.50 pesos to 1,524.50. The upper limit of the exchange-rate band rises to 1,951.50 pesos in October, well above current levels, so the bank does not need to sell dollars to defend the peso for now. (Ámbito, Infobae)
Morocco
Fuel prices rise again, with diesel above 16 dirhams. From October 1, diesel went up by about 0.8 dirham a litre, to above 16 dirhams at many stations, and petrol by about 0.4 dirham, as international oil prices stay high because of the Middle East conflict. The government says it will keep supporting transport operators to limit the impact on fares, but repeated increases are squeezing household budgets. (Hespress, Le Guide du Maroc)
Egypt
Cairo stocks snap a nine-day losing streak. The EGX30 index rose 2.24% to 53,055 points on Thursday, its best session since early July, with smaller companies gaining even more and around EGP129 billion added to market value. The rally was led by local retail investors while foreign investors were net sellers, and the pound weakened to about 52.3 per dollar; the central bank held its key rates at 19% and 20% last week, with urban inflation at 14.5% in August. (Middle East Observer, Rio Times)
Nigeria
Public-sector unions start a three-day warning strike over fuel prices and pay. The Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council, which groups eight public-sector unions, called a nationwide warning strike from October 2 to 4 after a September 30 deadline passed without a government response. Workers want petrol prices, which have been around ₦1,400 a litre in major cities, cut sharply, an immediate wage award and talks on a new minimum wage to replace the current ₦70,000 a month. (Premium Times, Daily Trust)
South Africa
Factory activity returns to growth for the first time since May. The Absa manufacturing PMI rose to 50.7 in September from 45.8 in August, as the new orders index jumped to 50.8 from 40.3. Absa called it a welcome improvement after a weak winter, but employment remained weak, input costs rose faster and logistics problems at the port of Durban persisted. (Reuters / CNBC Africa, IT-Online)
China
Golden Week travel expected to reach 2.13 billion trips. Authorities expect about 2.13 billion cross-regional trips during the October 1–7 National Day holiday, around 300 million a day, and international flight bookings are up 22.5% on last year. Holiday spending on travel and services is closely watched as a gauge of consumer demand, while mainland stock markets stay closed until October 8. (China Daily, Kyunghyang Shinmun)
Japan
Tokyo inflation jumps to 2.7%, beating forecasts. Core consumer prices in the capital, a leading indicator for the whole country, rose 2.7% year on year in September, up from 1.8% in August and above the 2.4% expected, the fastest pace in 10 months. With prices running above the Bank of Japan’s 2% target after its September hike to 1.25%, the data strengthen the case for further rate rises that would lift loan and deposit rates. (Investing.com, investingLive)
India
GST collections rise 14.7% to over ₹2 lakh crore. Gross goods and services tax revenue reached about ₹2.04 lakh crore (₹2.04 trillion) in September, with receipts from domestic transactions up 10.1% and from imports up about 26%, while net collections after refunds rose 18.1%. In April–September, gross collections grew 11.6% to ₹12.46 lakh crore, a sign of resilient spending and stronger public finances. (Business Standard, APN News)
South Korea
Inflation eases to 2.9% but fuel costs stay high. Consumer prices rose 2.9% year on year in September, down from 3.1% in August, as farm products got cheaper, but petroleum product prices were up 14.8%, with diesel up 20%; core inflation was 2.8%. The government’s fuel price cap is estimated to have shaved 0.6 percentage points off inflation, and with prices still above the Bank of Korea’s 2% target, further rate rises remain possible. (Korea JoongAng Daily, Investing.com)
Middle East
Oil heads for a weekly loss as stockpile releases are agreed. Brent crude traded around $100 a barrel on Friday, down roughly 1.5–3% on the day depending on the contract and time, and was on course for a weekly loss of nearly 3%, while US crude fell to about $90, after European countries agreed to release diesel and crude from emergency stocks. Prices had jumped above $102 on Thursday on reports that a third US aircraft carrier group was heading to the region, and Barclays still raised its fourth-quarter Brent forecast to $115, a reminder that fuel and transport costs remain exposed to the conflict. (Reuters / Euronext, The National, Kitco)
OPEC+ expected to keep output targets unchanged on Sunday. Seven core OPEC+ members, including Saudi Arabia and Russia, are likely to leave November production targets steady at an online meeting on Sunday, according to sources cited by Reuters. The group’s output reached 25.0 million barrels a day in August, still about 5 million below February levels because of the regional conflict. (Reuters, AGBI)
Australia
Nvidia-backed Firmus prices a A$7.1 billion share float. AI data-centre operator Firmus has priced its stock market listing at A$11 a share to raise about A$7.1 billion, one of the largest IPOs in Australian history. Morningstar flagged concerns about how fast the company’s valuation has grown and its debt levels, a reminder of the risks for retail investors buying into the AI boom. (ABC News, Finimize)
Shares rebound 0.6% as bond yields ease. The ASX 200 rose about 0.6% to 8,663 points on Friday, led by technology and energy stocks, while Australian three-year bond yields have dropped about 13 basis points over four sessions. The Australian dollar was steady at about 69.3 US cents, and Commonwealth Bank expects the Reserve Bank to hold rates from here, though November remains possible if inflation stays sticky. (ABC News, Market Index)
Sources & method
Compiled by The Daily Economy editorial team with AI assistance from the sources linked in each item, cross-checked in at least two outlets, and updated several times a day. Read our editorial policy.