INO:

Stocks post three-day losing streak; European stocks close lower amid mixed signal on U.S.-China trade

Stocks slipped on Thursday as investors digested the latest reports surrounding the U.S.-China trade war. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 54.8 points, or 0.2% at 27,766.29. The S&P 500 dipped 0.16% to 3,103.54 while the Nasdaq Composite pulled back 0.2% to 8,506.21. Thursday marked the third straight day of losses for the Dow, its longest losing streak since August. The S&P 500 posted its first three-day slide since September. Boeing and Procter & Gamble were the biggest losers in the Dow, falling more than 1% each.
In corporate news, a source told CNBC’s Becky Quick that Charles Schwab is in talks to buy TD Ameritrade. The news sent TD Ameritrade shares flying by 17% while Schwab’s stock rose more than 8%. A deal between the two would create a company with $5 trillion in combined assets.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.4% lower at the closing bell, with almost every sector and all major bourses in negative territory. Basic resources, a sector heavily exposed to China, slipped 1.5% to lead losses, while autos stocks bucked the trend to end the session above the flatline.
In corporate news, Thyssenkrupp on Thursday reported a widening full-year net loss for fiscal 2019 and downgraded its 2020 outlook. The German giant’s stock plunged nearly 14% by the end of the session.
Source: CNBC

SERBIA:

Serbia to reduce public debt to around 47 pct of GDP

Serbia's debt-to-GDP ratio has dropped by almost 20 pct in four years, and the Public Debt Administration wants it reduced to around 47 pct by the end of 2022, says Ana Tripovic, acting head of the Public Debt Administration. We have managed to reduce the public debt, which amounts to around 23.8 bln euros, to the level of 51.9 pct of GDP and the goal of the Public Debt Administration is for it to be reduced to 47.2 pct by the end of 2022, Tripovic told Magazin Biznis in an interview.
Source: Tanjug

In Serbia the poor spend 200 euros a month, the wealthy up to 1,200 euros

According to a 2018 consumer survey, conducted by the State Statistical Office, last year, Serbian households spent an average of 64,481 dinars a month, with more than a third of their money going to food and drinks. People in Serbia spent 16% of their money on housing and heating and just over 9% on transport. Only 1.5%, the lowest percentage, was spent on education. The differences in consumption are quite pronounced – in Belgrade, the average monthly consumption of a family was 72,000 dinars, while, in the south and east of the country, the consumption was about 61,000 dinars. In urban areas, the average consumption, in addition to wages, was several thousand dinars higher than in rural areas of the country.
Source: Serbianmonitor

Serbia first in Europe in number of people employed for three months or less

At a time when official data show an unprecedented increase in employment, Serbia is the No 1 country in Europe in terms of the percentage of employees with job contracts that last less than three months. The percentage of workers employed for a short period has increased over three years from 4.6% to 10.1% in 2017, according to the survey “Indicators of Dignified Work in Serbia”, compiled by Sarita Bradas and Marija Reljanovic. In 2017, 11.6% of employees were employed in industry and construction for a period of fewer than three months, while 11.4% were employed for the same amount of time in the commercial sector. The total number of employees with limited duration job contracts increased by one third compared to 2014, while the number of those with permanent contracts increased by 5.5%.
Source: Serbianmonitor