US retail sales rose 0.2% in November, as expected. October’s number was revised up, to show growth of 1.1%, versus an initial estimate of 0.8%.

George Osborne, the former Tory Chancellor who was sacked by Theresa May, has landed another job. Not satisfied with eight, he’s taking on a ninth role.

Osborne, editor of the London’s Evening Standard newspaper, is joining his brother’s Silicon Valley venture capital fund - 9Yards Capital - as an adviser, adding yet another string to his bow.

Here are his nine roles:

• Editor, Evening Standard
• Adviser, 9Yards Capital
• Adviser, Blackrock
• Adviser, Exor
• Chair, Northern Powerhouse
• Fellow, McCain Institute
• Honorary Professor, University of Manchester
• Distinguished visiting fellow, Stanford’s Hoover Institution
• Dean’s fellow, Stanford’s graduate business school
  

Full story here:

The Bank of England has published an updated expenses policy, six months after some fairly shocking details emerged of huge expense claims.

At that time, MPs on the Treasury select committee criticised travel expenses amassed by two officials of almost £400,000, huge subsidies for the Bank’s staff at its south London sports club and a Christmas party costing £100,000.

Mark Carney, the Bank’s governor, revealed that his own expenses bill topped £300,000 over a two-year period.

Commenting on the new policy on Friday, Nicky Morgan, chair of the select committee, said:

Given the staggeringly high level of expenses claimed by some members of the Bank of England’s policy committees, the review of its expenses policy is welcome. The Bank must now ensure that the new rules are followed in both letter and spirit by all staff across the organisation.

The Treasury Committee will examine the Bank’s expenses, as well as the review itself, in detail when we take evidence from the Court of the Bank of England in the New Year.

Here’s the background to the story:

The pound is now down 0.6% against the dollar, at $1.2583, and 0.6% against the euro at €1.1292.

Travellers heading off for a festive break are finding their sterling isn’t stretching so far at some airports. As the BBC reports, people changing money at Heathrow are being offered as little as $1.05 for £1. Ouch.

French private sector output contracted for the first time in two-and-a-half years in December as activity at firms was disrupted by the so-called ‘gilets jaunes’ protests.

That’s according to the IHS Markit flash PMI for France, which came in at 49.3 – below the crucial 50 mark which separates expansion from contraction.

It was the first time output across the manufacturing and services sectors fell in France since June 2016.

IHS Markit said the weaker French performance was a drag on business growth in the wider eurozone in December:

Disruptions to business and travel in France arising from the ‘gilets jaunes’ protests added to the weaker demand environment, contributing to the first fall in French business activity for two-and- a-half years. Output fell in both manufacturing and services.

The eurozone ‘flash’ PMI survey for December is in and it’s much weaker than expected, signalling a weak end to 2018 for the region’s economy.

The headline index on the composite index - which combines activity at manufacturing and services firms - fell to 51.3 in December from 52.7 in November, where anything above 50 indicates growth.

It signalled the weakest rate of growth since November 2014, and was below economists’ expectations of 52.8.

New business in the single currency bloc almost stalled in December, job creation slipped to a two-year low, and firms grew more pessimistic about the outlook.

Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit – which compiles the survey - said:

The Eurozone economy saw a disappointing end to 2018, with growth slowing to the weakest for four years.

Companies are worried about the global economic and political climate, with trade wars and Brexit adding to increased political tensions within the euro area. The surveys also point to further signs that the struggling autos sector continued to act as a drag on the region’s economy.

Data from China overnight has spooked investors in Asia and is now having a similar effect in Europe where a sell-off is underway.

Retail sales grew by 8.1% in November, compared with a year earlier, the slowest since May 2003 and missing forecasts of an 8.8% rise.

Industrial production also disappointed, increasing by 5.4% year-on-year and not the 5.9% predicted by economists.

Stephen Innes, Oanda’s head of trading at Asia Pacific, said:

Investors are right to be worried about global growth as China’s economy continues to sputter. The weaker than expected retails sales print, a more significant part of the Chinese economy than exports, was weaker than expected.

The data lend support to the market’s view that things will get worse in China before they get better, this despite investment rising.

Indeed, the data was bad enough to trigger a rapid sugar-coated response from China National Bureau of Statistics official, and predictably equity markets and risk assets are reacting poorly.

The pound is having a bad morning, after Theresa May failed to make progress on Brexit during her trip to Brussels on Thursday.

The pound is down 0.5% against the dollar at $1.2594, and down 0.3% against the euro at €1.1330. Bad news for Brits planning a festive break in the US and Europe.

Trading is underway in Europe and all major indices have opened lower. It follows earlier falls in Asia, with the Hang Seng down -1.7% and the Nikkei falling 2%.

Investors have been spooked by data from China this morning, which showed retail sales grew at the slowest rate in 15 years in November, prompting fears of a slowdown in the world’s second largest economy.

Opening scores in Europe:

• FTSE 100: -0.9%

• Germany’s DAX: -1%

• France’s CAC: -1%

• Italy’s FTSE MIB: -0.9%

• Spain’s IBEX: -0.7%

• Europe’s STOXX 600: -0.7%

Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business.

November was another poor month for European car manufacturers, with sales of new cars down 8% - the third monthly fall in a row.

There were 1.1m new cars registered last month, compared with 1.2m in November 2017 according to European Automobile Manufacturers Association.

The November drop followed a 7.3% fall in October and a 23.5% fall in September. Major disruption to production has been caused by tougher emissions tests, introduced from September. What is less clear is to what extent weaker consumer confidence might also be weighing on car sales in the EU.

Renault suffered the biggest drop in sales in November, down 16%, followed by Volkswagen Group which was down 10.9%.

Sales were down in all five of the EU’s biggest markets: Spain (-12.6%); Germany (-9.9%); Italy (-6.3%); France (-4.7%); and the UK (-3%).

Also coming up today:

• 9am GMT: ‘Flash’ eurozone PMI surveys for manufacturing and services in December

• 1.30pm GMT: US retail sales for November