MADRID (Reuters) – The euro zone economy has experienced a strong recovery in the third quarter even though the most recent incoming data in August have been less robust, European Central Bank Vice President Luis de Guindos said on Tuesday. “In the third quart... More »
BRASILIA (Reuters) – Brazil’s official interest rates and the average cost of servicing its public debt have never been lower, but investors are becoming worried that the government could face a funding crisis next year. The premium that investors demand to le... More »
BENGALURU (Reuters) – Funds recommended equity holdings be trimmed to the lowest in over four years in August, despite record-breaking gains by world stocks, as the pandemic drags on and new data suggest the nascent economic rebound is stalling, Reuters polls ... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan was hit by its biggest economic slump on record in the second quarter as the coronavirus pandemic emptied shopping malls and crushed demand for cars and other exports, bolstering the case for bolder policy action to prevent a deeper rec... More »
WELLINGTON (Reuters) – New Zealand’s Finance Minister Grant Robertson said on Monday that the new wage subsidy scheme is forecast to cost about NZ$510 million ($333.80 million) and cover 470,000 jobs. The scheme was announced last week after New Zealand locked... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Oil rose on Monday, supported by an improvement in Chinese factory data and rising energy demand as countries eased coronavirus-related lockdowns, but traders remained cautious due to U.S.-China tensions and uncertainty over a U.S. stimulus ... More »
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt’s annual urban consumer price inflation fell to 4.2% in July from 5.6% in June, the central statistics agency CAPMAS said on Monday. Month on month inflation increased to 0.4% in July from 0.1% in June mainly on the back of an increase ... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s factory deflation eased in July, driven by a rise in global oil prices and as industrial activity climbed back towards pre-coronavirus levels, adding to signs of recovery in the world’s second-largest economy. The producer price ind... More »
BOSTON/CHICAGO, August 3 (Reuters) – A decline in U.S. Treasury yields over recent weeks has investors eyeing the approach of an unusual phenomenon – the entire U.S. yield curve sinking below 1%. Policymakers are looking to position the country to recover once... More »
LONDON/TOKYO (Reuters) – Euro zone manufacturing activity expanded modestly last month, its first growth since early 2019, and Asia’s pain eased as the contraction slowed in export-reliant nations, adding to hopes the sector is emerging from the hit of the cor... More »
SINGAPORE/LONDON (Reuters) – Oil prices edged higher on Monday helped by a weak dollar and expected U.S. stimulus measures but gains were capped by rising global coronavirus cases and tensions between the United States and China. Brent crude LCOc1 rose 32 cent... More »
LONDON/BENGALURU (Reuters) – Gold’s record rally is moving tantalisingly close to the psychologically key $2,000 level, powered by investors seeking cover from COVID-19’s global economic toll, as reflected in dollar weakness, faltering stocks and U.S.-China tr... More »
BERLIN (Reuters) – The danger to the euro zone economy from the coronavirus pandemic is not yet over, European Central Bank board member Fabio Panetta told La Repubblica, adding that he saw no need to make any tweaks to the bank’s massive asset purchase progra... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Investors pumped money into riskier bonds and equity funds, BofA’s weekly fund flow statistics showed on Friday, as unprecedented stimulus measures helped offset worries about rising COVID-19 case numbers in the United States. The policy sup... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – A growth spurt in the balance sheets of the world’s biggest central banks has crested in recent weeks, drawing warnings from investors that any signs of backpedaling on stimulus will jolt financial markets and strangle economic recovery. The... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank will use its stimulus firepower fully even as the euro zone economy shows some signs of rebounding from its pandemic-induced recession, ECB President Christine Lagarde said on Thursday. Tackling the biggest econo... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Euro zone banks maintained relatively easy access to credit for firms in the second quarter with the backing of government guarantees, but they will likely tighten credit standards in the following three months, the European Central Bank ... More »
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – India’s retail inflation picked up in June, pushed by price increases for some food and fuel items, but economists said the central bank could still ease rates because of concerns about economic slowdown caused by lockdown. Annual retail ... More »
OTTAWA (Reuters) – Producer prices in Canada gained 0.4% in June from May, primarily on higher prices for energy and petroleum products, Statistics Canada said on Friday in a preliminary flash estimate. Energy and petroleum prices jumped 11.7%, the agency said... More »
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The euro zone economy will drop deeper into recession this year and rebound less steeply in 2021 than previously thought, the European Commission forecast on Tuesday, with France, Italy and Spain struggling the most due to the COVID-19 pan... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – A fresh batch of grim economic data kept the euro and the pound under pressure on Tuesday as sentiment faltered amid fears new COVID-19 hot spots across the world might jeopardise the swift recovery from the pandemic investors are hoping for... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – A string of positive economic indicators in the euro zone confirm that a recovery is on its way but the bloc may still need years to reach pre-crisis levels of activity, European Central Bank policymaker Klaas Knot said on Thursday. “I wo... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – BlackRock’s Investment Institute said on Tuesday it was “warming up” to European assets following what it called the eurozone’s “impressive” efforts to tackle the coronavirus. The research arm of the world’s biggest fund manager said two fac... More »
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Sweden’s economy looks like it has started to pick up after the impact of the novel coronavirus and measures to halt its spread, Finance Minister Magdalena Andersson said on Tuesday. “If you summarize, there are a number of indicators tha... More »
(Reuters) – The European Central Bank beefed up its bond-buying programme on Thursday in its latest effort to support a euro zone economy pummelled by more than two months of shutdowns to cope with the coronavirus pandemic. Following are highlights of ECB Pres... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Investors are bearish on stocks, especially riskier assets, and expect a slower economic recovery as the risk of a second wave of infections from the novel coronavirus persists, a BofA fund manager survey showed. World stocks have bounced ba... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Bitcoin slid on Monday in volatile trading, after it went through a technical adjustment that reduced the rate at which new coins are created, but the outlook remained upbeat as the increase in supply slows down. Monday’s “halving” cuts th... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – The Bank of Japan expanded monetary stimulus on Monday and pledged to buy unlimited amount of bonds to keep borrowing costs low as the government tries to spend its way out of the deepening economic pain from the coronavirus pandemic. The mov... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – The European Central Bank meets on Thursday, the ink barely dry on its emergency bond-buying scheme, and markets are already asking what more it will do to help the euro zone economy through the coronavirus crisis. Its emergency stimulus, wh... More »
BENGALURU (Reuters) – The euro zone economy is already in its deepest recession on record, according to a Reuters poll of economists, who have stuck to a bleak outlook and worry the downturn might be even worse as coronavirus lockdowns across the bloc take the... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The euro zone’s fiscal response to the coronavirus crisis has been inadequate so far and threatens the single market, European Central Bank board member Fabio Panetta said in an editorial published by Politico. Budget action should be pro... More »
MUMBAI (Reuters) – The impact of the novel coronavirus outbreak on the Indian economy would depend on the depth, duration and diffusion of the crisis, the Reserve Bank of India said in the minutes of its emergency monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting in Mar... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Help to euro zone members struggling under the weight of the coronavirus crisis should come from the European level, European Central Bank board member atold Greek newspaper To Vima in an interview. “This is not just a question of Europea... More »
(Reuters) – Bond investor and DoubleLine Capital Chief Executive Jeffrey Gundlach said on Tuesday he believes the coronavirus sell-off is not over yet and that the lows stocks hit in March will be surpassed in April due to uncertainty over the outbreak. “I thi... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Euro zone governments should “get their acts together” and respond to the coronavirus pandemic and its economic fallout in a bold and coordinated way now that the ECB has secured cheap financing for it, two ECB rate-setters said on Friday... More »
ISTANBUL/ANKARA (Reuters) – Shops closed across Turkey on Thursday to help halt the coronavirus spread, dimming the economy’s prospects and raising questions for hundreds of thousands of workers after Ankara pledged $15 billion in support and advised Turks to ... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank launched 750 billion euro emergency bond purchase scheme in a bid to stop a pandemic-induced financial rout from shredding the euro zone’s economy and raising fresh concerns about the currency bloc’s viability. W... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Borrowing costs in the United States, euro zone, Britain and Japan surged on Wednesday after two days in which governments across the globe announced trillions of dollars of spending to support locked-down economies frozen by the coronavirus... More »
SYDNEY (Reuters) – The U.S. Federal Reserve and its global counterparts moved aggressively with sweeping emergency rate cuts and offers of cheap dollars to help combat the coronavirus pandemic that has jolted markets and paralyzed large parts of the world econ... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Investors pulled out of most asset classes, with stocks and bond funds seeing a combined $36 billion of outflows in the week to Wednesday, BofA said, amid fears of economic damage from the coronavirus epidemic. Stock markets have been sellin... More »
RIYADH/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Central bankers from the United States, Japan and the euro zone meeting in the desert kingdom of Saudi Arabia this weekend had their own shifting sands to cross – those of elusive inflation. The problem facing all three is that pr... More »
OSLO (Reuters) – Norwegian headline inflation rate is forecast to ease in 2020 to 1.5 percent for the year from 2.2% in 2019, a publicly appointed commission said on Monday. With members from labor unions, employers’ federations and Statistics Norway, the comm... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – A gauge of how Britons feel about their household finances hit its highest level on record this month, the latest sign of a confidence bounce since Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s decisive election win in December. The IHS Markit Household Fi... More »
OSLO (Reuters) – Norway’s consumer prices rose sharply in January from a year earlier, official data showed on Monday, strengthening the crown currency ahead of a major policy speech by the central bank governor on Thursday. Core inflation, a key measure for m... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Gathered in a German mountain castle last November for an evening retreat that ended with a whiskey-tasting, rebel European Central Bank policymakers and Christine Lagarde, their newly confirmed president, made a pact. Lagarde pledged to ... More »
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey’s consumer price inflation rose a bit more than expected to 12.15% year-on-year in January, official data showed on Monday, climbing for the third consecutive month after a dramatic drop last year. A currency crisis in 2018 sent inf... More »
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Interest rates in the euro zone could remain historically low for years, but the European Central Bank’s (ECB) ultra-loose monetary policy risks becoming counterproductive, ECB governing council member Klaas Knot said in an interview publ... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – Growth in China’s industrial and retail sectors beat expectations in November, as government support propped up demand in the world’s second-largest economy and amid easing trade hostilities with Washington. The set of upbeat figures releas... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank left policy unchanged at new ECB President Christine Lagarde’s first meeting on Thursday, keeping money taps wide open and further stimulus ready as the euro zone economy continues to suffer from broader global t... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Friday’s booming U.S. jobs report should give the Federal Reserve all it needs to stick to its plan not to cut interest rates further in the near future, so when U.S. central bankers meet this week, most of the focus will be on their out... More »
HARARE (Reuters) – Zimbabwe state doctors who were fired for going on strike have rejected a government offer to return to work, their union said on Friday. The doctors went on strike on Sept.3 to protest against poor wages, in some cases less than US$100 a mo... More »
BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Euro zone inflation accelerated faster than expected in November on a rise in food and services prices, likely comforting European Central Bank policymakers even if some factors pushing up prices may be only temporary. The ECB ha... More »
MONTEVIDEO (Reuters) – Uruguay’s conservative opposition was on track to win a presidential election run-off against the ruling liberal party late on Sunday, but a slimmer-than-expected lead meant an official result was not expected for some days. With 99.4% o... More »
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s central bank unexpectedly trimmed a closely watched lending rate on Monday, the first such cut in more than four years and a signal to markets that policymakers are ready to act to prop up slowing growth. The People’s Bank of China... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – New bank loans in China fell more than expected to the lowest in 22 months in October, but the drop was likely due to seasonal factors and policymakers are still expected to ramp up support for the cooling economy in coming months. Chinese ... More »
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s central bank sees some room to further cut its key rate, First Deputy Governor Ksenia Yudayeva said on Monday. “…in principle, we currently see certain room for a further reduction, but we have to follow the situation very closely, ... More »
MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine annual inflation likely eased for a fifth straight month in October due to high base effects from the previous year as well as lower fuel and rice prices, a Reuters poll showed. The median forecast in a poll of 10 economists was f... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – Iran would need oil priced at $194.6 a barrel to balance its budget next year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said. Hurt by tighter U.S. sanctions, Iran – a key member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) – i... More »
SALADILLO, Argentina (Reuters) – There is a saying among farmers when times are hard on the Argentine Pampas: “Unsaddle the horse until the sun comes out”. That saying is starting to spread in farm towns like Saladillo, after the populist-leaning Peronists won... More »
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (Reuters) – Argentina’s farmers have some questions for President-elect Alberto Fernandez, after the center-left Peronist won a decisive election on Sunday, ousting business-friendly leader Mauricio Macri. Across the country’s fertile P... More »
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentina’s central bank announced early Monday morning it would sharply cut the amount of dollars individuals could buy, amid concerns over outflows of foreign exchange reserves accelerating after President Mauricio Macri was voted ou... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – European Central Bank President Mario Draghi told his successor on Thursday to “never give up” on propping up the euro zone economy in the face of a worsening outlook and little help from governments. At the last press conference of his e... More »
PARIS (Reuters) – French consumer prices fell 0.4% in September compared to August, giving a year-on-year inflation rate of 1.1%, according to EU-harmonised data published on Tuesday that confirmed earlier forecasts. The European Central Bank (ECB) has a targe... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – UBS Wealth Management said on Friday it still expects the UK government to ask for an extension to the deadline for exiting the European Union and to hold a general election, though it acknowledged that chances of a Brexit deal have increase... More »
DENVER (Reuters) – Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Esther George on Sunday rejected the notion that the U.S. central bank should cut interest rates to try to boost low inflation, which she said is largely a result of global forces that U.S. monetary... More »
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentina’s embattled President Mauricio Macri took to the streets on Saturday with a defiant message: “Yes we can,” he told crowds of supporters in Buenos Aires as he looks to launch an unlikely comeback ahead of general elections nex... More »
BEIJING(Reuters) – China’s factory activity unexpectedly expanded at the fastest pace in 19 months in September as plants ramped up production and new orders rose, a private business survey showed on Monday, suggesting a modest recovery in the manufacturing se... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Euro zone governments must reform their economies and use appropriate fiscal policies to ensure that the European Central Bank is not overburdened, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday. Speaking at an event in Frankfurt, home ... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi pledged indefinite stimulus on Thursday to revive an ailing euro zone economy, tying the hands of his successor for years to come and sparking an immediate conflict with U.S. President Donald Trump... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank is giving euro zone banks a small reprieve from a penalty charge on their idle cash but this is likely to prove too little, too late for a sector hurt by years of low interest rates. In its latest bid to shield t... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The European Central Bank’s move to cut interest rates and restart a larger stimulus program drew fast reaction from the White House on Thursday, with President Donald Trump saying the ECB was undercutting the value of its currency and “... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank approved a fresh stimulus package as expected on Thursday, cutting interest rates and approving a new round of bond purchases to prop up euro zone growth and halt a worrisome drop in inflation expectations. Follo... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank approved a fresh stimulus package as expected on Thursday, cutting interest rates and approving a new round of bond purchases to prop up euro zone growth and halt a worrisome drop in inflation expectations. The E... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said on Thursday that the euro zone economy was in a period of “protracted” economic weakness, with inflation staying low and the balance of risks tilted toward the downside. “Incoming informat... More »
BENGALURU (Reuters) – Expansion in India’s manufacturing sector hit its slowest in 15 months in August as demand and output grew at their weakest pace in a year and cost pressures increased, a private sector survey showed on Monday. The survey comes after offi... More »
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentina’s government authorized currency controls on Sunday in an about-face by President Mauricio Macri, who had previously lifted many protectionist practices of his predecessor, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner. The central bank is ... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Bank of America Merrill Lynch said on Friday its market sentiment indicator has fallen to a level so bearish it has triggered a “contrarian” buy signal for assets considered more risky, such as equities, for the first time since January. The... More »
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s central bank would consider unconventional monetary options if the cash rate was cut to 0.5%, Deputy Governor Guy Debelle said on Tuesday, though he hoped such heavy policy adjustments would not be needed. Debelle said the Reserv... More »
BIARRITZ, France (Reuters) – Iran has an opportunity to come back into compliance with the nuclear deal and resume dialogue about its nuclear activities, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday. U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier he would mee... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. interest rates futures rose on Friday as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank will do what it can to preserve the longest U.S. economic expansion on record, supporting bets on a further decline in key borrowing co... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. interest rates futures rallied on Friday as rising trade tensions between China and the United States revived bets the Federal Reserve may lower key borrowing costs by a bold half-point next month. Earlier Friday, Beijing said it will... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. interest rates futures rose on Friday, erasing their earlier losses after China announced retaliatory tariffs on about $75 billion of U.S. imports, rekindling bets the trade war between the world’s biggest economies would not end soon... More »
OSLO (Reuters) – Norway’s central bank is expected to keep interest rates on hold on Aug. 15 while signaling that a hike will likely follow later this year amid solid growth, above-target inflation and currency weakness, a Reuters poll of economists showed. De... More »
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentine voters soundly rejected President Mauricio Macri’s austere economic policies in primary elections on Sunday, casting serious doubt on his chances of re-election in October, early official results showed. A coalition backing o... More »
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentine voters soundly rejected President Mauricio Macri’s austere economic policies in primary elections on Sunday, raising serious questions about his chances of re-election in October, early official results showed. A coalition ba... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – 1/ READY FOR A SCARY EURO ZONE GDP SHOW? Fears of a major downturn in euro zone powerhouse Germany grew this week following “scary” industrial output figures for June and reports due over the coming week that will hold those concerns up to t... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – It has become a jarring and frequent contradiction. President Donald Trump blames the Federal Reserve for putting the U.S. economy at risk while data shows an economy in “reasonably good” shape, as the head of the central bank recently s... More »
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Zimbabwe’s annual inflation almost doubled to a new 10-year high of 175.66% in June, data showed on Monday, stirring memories of years of economic chaos. Prices of basic goods from sugar to cooking oil to building material soared durin... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Investors pumped money into bonds and equities in the week to Wednesday with U.S. stock funds adding $1.7 billion, Bank of America Merrill Lynch said on Friday, as markets tried to weigh hopes for major central bank stimulus against economic... More »
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Commission lowered its estimates on Wednesday for euro zone growth and inflation, saying uncertainty over U.S. trade policy posed a major risk to the bloc. In its quarterly economic forecasts, the European Union’s executive ar... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – The Bank of Japan on Monday cut its assessment on factory output for two of the country’s nine regions and warned that more companies were feeling pinched by the U.S.-China trade war than three months ago. But the central bank maintained its ... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – A shrewd negotiator who has run the IMF but has little monetary policy experience, Christine Lagarde will face the challenge as the European Central Bank’s new chief of having to revive the euro zone economy with a largely depleted policy... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A now record-setting run of U.S. economic growth enters its 121st month on Monday, sustained by a decade of low interest rates and massive Federal Reserve intervention that helped put 22 million people back to work. But the real economic... More »
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – The Turkish lira, bonds and shares gained on Monday after the opposition dealt a stinging blow to President Tayyip Erdogan by winning control of Istanbul in a re-run mayoral election on Sunday. Turkish assets have lost value since March am... More »
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s central bank is expected to keep its benchmark policy rate steady on Wednesday for a fourth straight meeting, a Reuters poll showed, despite slowing growth and the way many Asian central banks have shifted toward easing policy. I... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – The frontrunner to be Britain’s next prime minister, Boris Johnson, came under renewed pressure on Sunday to explain the circumstances of a late-night row between him and girlfriend that led to the police being called to their home. Polls co... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Mario Draghi’s dramatic Tuesday hints of further monetary easing by the European Central Bank has stabilized collapsing euro zone inflation expectations, but the departing ECB chief will struggle to calm market fears of Japan-style economic ... More »
(Reuters) – Jeffrey Gundlach, chief executive of DoubleLine Capital and the most widely followed bond investor, said the Federal Reserve’s dovish turn in its policy statement on Wednesday took its lead from the bond market. The Fed is doing “what the bond mark... More »
BENGALURU (Reuters) – India’s retail inflation likely accelerated to a seven-month high in May on rising food prices, but it is expected to remain well below the Reserve Bank of India’s target, giving it room to ease policy further, a Reuters poll found. The R... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – After almost three years of successfully predicting a global economic revival, world bond markets are furiously flagging the risk of yet another recession, as well as low inflation for a generation. Spooked by the escalating U.S.-China trade... More »
