BOE OFFICIAL MAKES FORCEFUL CASE FOR NEGATIVE UK INTEREST RATES
—Tenreyro Sees Diminishing Benefit of QE as UK Output Contracts Sharply By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) – A top Bank of England rate setter forcefully endorsed the case for sub-zero interest rates, raising questions over the continued benefits of quantitative easing with UK output in the midst of another severe contraction. “My overall assessment is […]
STATUS CHECK COMMENTARY: TRUMP HOPES FOR A REBOUND, FACES ANOTHER IMPEACHMENT
WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The following is Friday night’s status check of developments in the U.S. that can influence economic, health and political outcomes. · The bastions of freedom are firmly in place, holding back the forces of Trump, at least temporarily. That’s right, Twitter, Facebook, Google, even Spotify have moved to keep the president off […]
DATA PREVIEW: RETAIL SALES AND INFLATION MEASURES
WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – Economic data in the week ahead includes the December retail sales report, along with the two major inflation measures, the CPI just a week from Inauguration Day and the PPI but market participants are unlikely to pay much attention. The major stock indexes were propelled back into record territory Friday, in part […]
JAPAN NOV HOUSEHOLD SPENDING POSTS MODEST RISE ON YEAR BUT SLIPS FROM OCT AMID PANDEMIC FEARS
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japan’s household spending in November posted a modest rise from a year earlier, up for the second straight month, as the effects of a sales tax hike in October 2019 had faded, but consumption marked the first month-on-month decline in four months in light of rising new cases of the […]
EURO-AREA ECONOMIC SENTIMENT PICKS UP IN DECEMBER
—Germany Sees Sentiment Stagnate By Marco Babic ZURICH (MaceNews) – Economic sentiment in the Euro-area was a positive note, rising in December from the previous month driven by “markedly higher” industrial and consumer confidence, the European Commission said in its latest Business and Consumer Survey report. Economic sentiment picked up 2.7 points in December to […]
EVANS: MON. POLICY WELL POSITIONED NOW; DECIDE IN SPRING ABOUT MORE QE
Can Adjust Pace, Duration of Bond Buys If Decide Need More Accommodation Not Concerned About Rising Bond Yields If Reflect Stronger Recovery Don’t Raise Funds Rate Until Inflation Overshoots 2%, Averages 2% By Steven K. Beckner (MaceNews) – Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans suggested Monday that, as far as he’s concerned, it would […]
JAPAN DEC TOKYO CPI POSTS LARGEST Y/Y DROP IN 10 YEARS
–Sliding Energy Prices, Government-Led Travel Discounts Cited By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Consumer prices in Tokyo, a leading indicator of the national average, took the deepest dive in a decade in December, hit by falling food and energy prices as well as a controversial five-month-old government program to support the pandemic-hit tourism industry with hefty […]
UK AGREES TO EUROPEAN UNION BREXIT DEAL
–Few Details But UK Claims Tariff/Quota-free Access for Goods Exports to EU By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) – With just a week left to run on the current transitional arrangement, the UK has agreed a trade deal with the European Union that will officially end Britain’s membership of the European Union. The UK left the […]
STATUS CHECK COMMENTARY: A LITTLE MORE CHAOS PLEASE
WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The following is Tuesday’s status check of developments in the U.S. that can influence economic, health and political outcomes. President Trump is truculent, threatened, even some say, delusional. Nearly invisible for nine days, he decided to take the stage again, making news like the good old days. Should news people be delighted? […]
JAPAN GOVT SEES PANDEMIC-CAUSED SOFT SPOTS IN SPENDING, DOWNGRADES VIEW ON EUROPE
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japan’s government Tuesday warned that consumer spending, which accounts for over half of domestic output, is showing soft spots despite its overall improvement from the pandemic-caused slump, according to its monthly report released by the Cabinet Office. While noting increasing export volumes, particularly of automobiles and semiconductor-producing equipment, the government […]