Bloomberg Household confidence in the US is closing in on its best year since before the last recession, according to figures in the Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index. Comfort measure cooled to 46 in period ended Dec. 25, the first retreat in five weeks, from 46.7. The gauge in the prior week was the strongest since April 2015. Gauge of ...

  Bloomberg Euro-area manufacturing expanded last month at the fastest rate since April 2011, in a sign that the currency bloc’s recovery is intact heading into 2017. A Purchasing Managers’ Index climbed to 54.9 in December, IHS Markit said on Monday. The reading matches the initial estimate on Dec. 15 and was up from 53.7 in November. Higher import costs ...

  DUBAI / Reuters Gulf stock markets were mixed on Monday as most reopened after the New Year, with Oman falling after the release of an austere state budget for 2017. Egypt edged down although foreign investors remained net buyers of stocks. Dubai’s index rose 0.2 percent as much activity focused on speculative stocks with prices below 1 dirham. Islamic ...