The Bank of England’s policymaker Jonathan Haskel said the central bank encountered difficulty as the government’s expansionary fiscal policy appeared to place it at odds with the BoE’s efforts to cool inflation.“We are in a difficult, uncomfortable position, frankly, because I don’t like being in a situation where you have …
Read More »EUR/USD fluctuates on softer US dollar
The EUR/USD pair bounces off year-to-date lows around 0.9800 as price action gets overstretched. The prevalent market sentiment is negative and failed to reinforce the US dollar.US jobless claims were better than expected, while the EU’s consumer confidence is disappointing the Eurozone. The Euro is almost flat after hitting a …
Read More »What could Italian elections mean for bonds, euro and banks?
The general election in Italy could add some more trouble to Europe’s heap of existing troubles including the war in the east, the hot inflation and the looming energy crisis.Forecasts indicate that power in Italy could be driven to the far-right coalition led by Giorgia Meloni from “the Brothers of …
Read More »Big US banks’ prime rate soars to highest since 2008
Three major US banks are raising their prime lending rates to the highest levels since the global financial crisis of 2008, following Fed’s interest rate hike.JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N), Citigroup Inc and Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N) said the new rates, including the latest 75 basis point hike, would …
Read More »Eurozone Consumer Confidence Falls to Record Low
Consumer confidence in the eurozone retreated to record low in September amid accelerating concerns about increased costs of living and slowdown of the EU economy. The European Commission said Thursday that its measure of consumer confidence in the region fell by 3.8 points in September from the August reading. The …
Read More »Gold trims its losses as dollar declines
Gold prices pared losses on Thursday as the dollar retreated from a two-decade high, although pressure continued on the precious metal amid rising US bond yields and hawkish comments on interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve. And gold fell in spot transactions 0.2 percent, recording 1670.40 dollars an ounce …
Read More »BOE hikes policy rate by 50 bps to 2.25% as expected
Following its September policy meeting, the Bank of England (BoE) announced that it raised the policy rate by 50 basis points (bps) to 2.25%. Although this decision aligned with the market expectation, futures markets were pricing in a strong chance of a 75 bps hike. The GBP/USD pair meets with a …
Read More »SNB hikes interest rates by 75 basis points
The Swiss Central Bank raised interest rates Thursday, September 22, by 75 basis points for the second time in a row during the third quarter of 2022, to levels of 0.5% from -0.25%. The rise came by 75 basis points to -0.25% on June 16, which was the first rate …
Read More »Oil prices recover after falling on US rate hike
Oil prices rebounded on Thursday after falling 1% in the previous session, as fears of tight supplies in the winter outweighed fears of a global recession. Brent crude futures rose 15 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $89.98 a barrel by 0657 GMT, offsetting losses in early Asian trade. US West …
Read More »European shares open lower after US interest rate hike
European shares started lower on Thursday, with technology shares leading the decline, after the US Federal Reserve announced another big increase in interest rates and signaled further increases in its battle to contain rising inflation. The Stoxx 600 index fell 1.5 percent by 0707 GMT, and the German DAX lost …
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