GERMAN ECONOMIC EXPECTATIONS START 2021 ON A POSITIVE NOTE, ZEW REPORTS
By Marco Babic ZURICH (MaceNews) – Expectations for Germany’s economy started the year off on a positive note, even in the face of uncertainty about new COVID-19 restrictions, with the outlook for the export market in particular providing a foundation for optimism. The ZEW Institute’s Indicator of Economic Sentiment rose 6.8 points to 61.8 in […]
ITALY’S PM CONTE WINS LOWER HOUSE CONFIDENCE VOTE; SENATE CHALLENGE AHEAD
By Silvia Marchetti ROME (MaceNews) – Italy’s Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte won on Monday a key vote of confidence in the Lower House with 321 votes out of a total 630, six more than the absolute majority required. The main challenge will be on Tuesday morning at the Senate where the ruling coalition has a […]
STATUS CHECK COMMENTARY: WASHINGTON’S IDEOLOGICAL BATTLE AT INFLECTION POINT
–‘I Have a Dream’ or “I Have a Nightmare?’ WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The following is Monday’s status check of developments in the U.S. that can influence economic, health and political outcomes. • Great battles seldom preserve the status quo and the one shaping up in Washington could greatly accelerate ideological change or usher in an […]
DATA PREVIEW: HOUSING WEEK AND HOPEFULLY NEW BEGINNINGS
–Domestic Terrorism, Mounting Virus Death Tolls, Deep Divisions Overwhelm Data WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The upcoming week’s events, an Inauguration Day in the armed camp “Green Zone” that is now D.C. amid threats of violence at statehouses across the country, overshadows what little economic data will be published. The week begins with a holiday, progresses to […]
ITALY RECOVERY AHEAD, BACK TO PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS IN 2023 – BOI
By Silvia Marchetti ROME (MNI) – The Bank of Italy Friday forecast an average 3.5% GDP growth this year, 3.8% in 2022 and and 2.3% in 2023 when pre-crisis levels are expected to be recovered. In its economic bulletin the BOI said the European Central Bank’s ongoing accommodative policy stance and new European measures aimed […]
FED’S POWELL: NOW NOT TIME TO TALK ABOUT EXIT; WON’T CONSIDER UNTIL GOALS REACHED
— Vows To Communicate Very Clearly To Markets To Avoid 2013-style ‘Taper Tantrum’ By Steven K. Beckner (MaceNews) – Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell stressed Thursday that the Fed is far from “exiting” either its zero short-term interest rate stance or its aggressive asset purchase program and proclaimed that the Fed will clearly communicate its […]
STATUS CHECK COMMENTARY: THE WASHINGTON MINDSET GETS A MAKEOVER
WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The following is Thursday’s status check of developments in the U.S. that can influence economic, health and political outcomes. • The thousands of government affairs specialists paid by American business firms to be their eyes, ears and arm-wrestlers in Washington are in the midst of the major recalibration that happens when a […]
ECB SIGNALS LESS RELIANCE ON QE AMID SIGNS OF GOVERNING COUNCIL DISAGREEMENT
–Minutes of December Meeting Suggest Council May Not Exhaust Emergency QE Allocation By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) – The European Central Bank could rely more heavily on its long-term refinancing operations in combatting the Covid-related economic downturn, although minutes of the December rate-setting meeting suggest some disagreement about the appropriate policy path. “The focus on […]
PRESIDENT TRUMP NOW FACES AN UNCERTAIN FATE AT A SENATE TRIAL
By Denny Gulino WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The second impeachment of President Donald Trump Wednesday has left open the future of his “stop the steal” movement entwined with the violent attack on the Capitol. The next step, a Senate trial, could clarify what happens next. The final vote was 232 to 197 with eight members not […]
FED’S BEIGE BK SEES MODEST EXPANSION AMID MIXED SIGNALS
WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The surge in COVID-19 cases and “stricter containment measures” have produced mixed results for consumer spending while manufacturing has continued to recover despite weaker auto sales, the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book survey suggested Wednesday. Four districts – Kansas City, Philadelphia, St. Louis and New York – reported no improvement and “a growing […]