Market Update

Oil prices fell about 1% on Wednesday, abandoning early gains as worries about a probable US recession outweighed optimism that China’s lifting of COVID-19 curbs will fuel demand for crude in the world’s top oil importer.Brent futures fell 94 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $84.98 a barrel. U.S. West …

Philadelphia Fed’s Patrick Harker, on Wednesday, said that he is willing for the US central bank to move to a slower pace of interest rate hikes as a reaction to some signals that denote how hot inflation is cooling.“High inflation is a scourge, leading to economic inefficiencies and hurting Americans …

US Stocks gave back earlier gains on Wednesday as investors put an end to the new year’s rally, now in its third week. The latest reversal could be attributed to a combination of fluctuations as well as skittishness and profit taking.The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 436 points, or 1.3%, …

The Fed needs to raise interest rates a “little bit” above the 5.00% to 5.25% range in order to bring inflation to heel, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said on Wednesday, as she declined to disclose her preferred size of move at the upcoming policy meeting.“We’re not at 5% yet, …

Concerns that the federal government could hit its debt ceiling spiked after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sent a letter to party leaders in Congress urging them to raise the debt limit before the expected deadline on Thursday.Congress can prevent economic disaster by increasing or suspending the limit, as they have …

The Swiss Franc sharply rises versus US dollar and the Euro. Expectations about a less hawkish ECB do support the Swiss Franc, so far, the USD/CHF pair falls for the fifth consecutive day on Wednesday.The USD/CHF is falling by almost a hundred pips on Wednesday after trimming some losses during …

“Chair Powell is up to date with COVID-19 vaccines and boosters. Following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance, he is working remotely while isolating at home,” a news release by the US Federal Reserve said on Wednesday. Powell, 69, is “experiencing mild symptoms,” according to the announcement. Powell’s most …

Retail Sales in the United States declined by 1.1% on a monthly basis in December. This follows November’s fall of 0.6% and misses consensus estimates for a 0.8% fall. Excluding autos, core retail sales also contracted by 1.1% during the reported month as compared to a 0.4% fall anticipated and a modest …

The three main figures in Ukraine’s interior ministry have been killed in a helicopter crash beside a nursery in an eastern suburb of the capital Kyiv. Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky, 42, died alongside his first deputy minister and state secretary. Seventeen people died when the helicopter came down in Brovary …

The European Union’s statistics office (Eurostat) said on Wednesday that the rate of consumer price inflation slowed in the single European currency area in December, as expected, thanks to the continued decline in energy prices after reaching record levels earlier. Eurostat added that prices in the twenty countries that share …