-- The Chinese service sector's value-added output comprised 61.7% of gross domestic product in the first quarter, a year-on-year increase of 0.4 percentage points, Xinhua News Agency reported Monday, citing the National Bureau of Statistics.
The economic growth contribution of the sector rose 4 percentage points to 63.2%, the report said.
Service retail sales increased 5.5%, while goods retail sales jumped 3.3 percentage points, Xinhua said.
Stifel Canada is maintaining its first-quarter forecasts for Gildan Activewear (GIL.TO), which is scheduled to publish its fiscal first-quarter results on April 30th.Analyst Martin Landry is expecting earnings per share to fall 42% to $0.34, inline with consensus of $0.35. He is maintaining a buy rating and US$80.00 on the shares of the company.Landry noted that since Gildan introduced its 2026 guidance, several headwinds have emerged: cotton and polyester prices have risen significantly and may begin to weigh on Gildan's cost of goods sold in Q4/26. Energy and freight costs have also increased rapidly following outbreak of the war in Iran, creating further unexpected pressure on Gildan's cost structure."While we do not believe Gildan's 2026 financial guidance is at risk yet, it could come under pressure if elevated energy and commodity prices persist," he adds. However, Landry still sees value in Gildan's shares at current levels, which is down 9% in the last three months compared with the S&P/TSX Consumer Discretionary Index which is up 1.5% during the same period.Price: $83.19, Change: $+0.44, Percent Change: +0.53%
EMEA crude futures climbed in after-hours trading on Wednesday as Iran's seizure of two commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, shortly after President Trump extended the ceasefire, reignited fears of a prolonged global energy supply disruption.Brent crude futures rose by 3.37% to $101.73 per barrel, while Murban oil futures were up 4.88% to $100.99/bbl.Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday that their naval forces stopped two ships attempting to cross the Hormuz and directed them to Iranian territorial waters. MarineTraffic said the two vessels are both operated by MSC.The UK Maritime Trade Operations said that at least three vessels were targeted by gunfire in the Strait, as the Revolutionary Guards warned that any disruption to order and safety in the strategic waterway would be considered a "red line"."With supply losses effectively locked in for now, the market is set to face increasing strain if a resolution is delayed, and some caution that transit through the Strait may not fully return to normal," Saxo Bank strategists said in a note Wednesday.The attack by the Revolutionary Guard follows the extension of the US-Iran ceasefire, while Washington maintains a naval blockade of the Hormuz after planned talks between the two sides fell apart.On Tuesday, Trump said in a social media post that if the US lifted its blockade to open the Strait, "there can never be a deal with Iran, unless we blow up the rest of their country, their leaders included!""Iran doesn't want the Strait of Hormuz closed, they want it open so they can make $500 million dollars a day," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.Meanwhile, the US President said that a ceasefire would stay in effect until a "seriously fractured" Iranian leadership can come up with a unified proposal for a permanent resolution.Iranian officials have accused the US of breaching its commitments under a 10-point framework that Iran offered at the start of a fragile ceasefire, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi calling the US blockade of Iranian ports an "act of war".Soojin Kim, research analyst at MUFG, said despite the temporary pause in military escalation, peace talks have faltered, and tensions remain high as both sides continue to clash over shipping access and broader geopolitical issues.On the supply side, Russia will divert oil previously intended for Germany via the Druzhba pipeline from Kazakhstan to other routes starting from May 1, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak reportedly said on Wednesday.The move came a day after Ukraine said it had completed repairs to the Druzhba oil pipeline and was ready to pump Russian oil to Europe.
European natural gas futures climbed in after-hours trading on Wednesday following renewed geopolitical disruption in the Middle East after Iran seized vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, escalating tensions around a critical global energy chokepoint.Front-month Dutch TTF contracts rose 5.769% to 44.35 euros ($51.94) per megawatt hour, while UK NBP futures gained 4.642% to 110.00 British pence ($1.49) per therm.Prices were supported by heightened supply concerns as the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively constrained after more than seven weeks of disruption, removing an estimated 20% of global LNG flows from regular transit routes. Market sentiment was further pressured by continued instability, including reports that Iranian forces attacked three vessels in the Strait early Wednesday, with Iran's Revolutionary Guard confirming the seizure of two ships.Late Tuesday, US President Donald Trump announced an extension of the ceasefire framework with Iran, stating Washington would delay further military action to allow Tehran additional time to present a conflict resolution proposal. However, diplomats report little tangible progress in setting up negotiations.On the supply side, European storage levels stood at 30.61% of capacity on Wednesday, more than seven percentage points below year-ago levels, as the region enters the restocking season with structurally tighter inventories.Norwegian output, Europe's primary gas supply source, added further pressure. March production fell to 12.34 billion cubic feet per day, down 1.6% from February and 0.8% year-on-year, according to preliminary data from the Norwegian Offshore Directorate. Output came in 0.5% below forecast. It marked the second consecutive monthly decline on both a sequential and annual basis.Norway's total gas sales in March 2026 were 10.8 billion cubic meters, down 0.9 Bcm from the previous month.