Bloomberg Purchases of new US homes increased in November to the second-fastest pace in almost nine years as the beginning of a spike in mortgage rates persuaded buyers to quickly sign contracts. Sales rose 5.2 percent to a four-month high of a 592,000 annualized pace, Commerce Department data showed. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey was for a …

  Bloomberg Canada’s gross domestic product shrank unexpectedly in October as factories suffered their worst month in almost three years, adding to signs the country’s outlook is worsening. Output fell 0.3%, Statistics Canada said in Ottawa. Economists surveyed by Bloomb-erg expected a flat reading, but widespread declines in goods-producing industries contributed to the largest monthly drop since May. Manufacturing output …

  Bloomberg The UK current-account deficit widened in the third quarter as Britain posted its worst trade performance in almost three years. The difference between money coming into the UK and money sent out was 25.5 billion pounds ($31.3 billion), the Office for National Statistics said. That’s equal to 5.2 percent of gross domestic product. The trade deficit widened to …