, which accounts for two-thirds of US economy activity, rose by 1.8% in January, the largest increase in nearly two years and exceeding analyst estimates, according to a Reuters poll.
The strong data deepened a market sell-off across most equities, with the MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 50 countries, shedding 1.17%. European stocks fell 1.04%. On Wall Street, all three major indexes posted their biggest weekly drop of 2023, led by a sell-off of stocks in so-called cyclical sectors including technology, communication services, consumer discretionary, and even healthcare.