Category: Outlook

FOMC PREPARES FOR FIRST MEETING IN NEW MONETARY FRAMEWORK ERA

By Steven K. Beckner (MaceNews) – There was very little chance the Federal Reserve was going to raise interest rates anytime soon but, just to make sure, the Fed’s rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee gave itself a dual justification for holding rates down indefinitely with the new monetary policy framework it announced on Aug. 27 […]

ECB’S LANE: BASELINE FORECASTS BASED ON WIDESPREAD COVID JAB BY END-2021

By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) – The most recent ECB economic forecasts assume that a vaccine to combat Covid-19 virus could be available by the end of next year, according to the central bank’s chief economist, Philip Lane Friday.  The “baseline” estimates assume that “maybe a vaccine will be found by the middle of next […]

BOC’S MACKLEM Q&A: AS BANK ASSESSES ASSET PURCHASES, ‘COULD BE MORE, COULD BE LESS’

NEW YORK (MaceNews) – Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem Thursday said the bank’s “recalibration” of its asset purchases means it will consider adjusting the scale of its buying, and the maturities of its debt purchases. Macklem, speaking at a press conference, was asked to explain the bank’s recent statements that it will “recalibrate” its large-scale asset […]

ECB ‘MONITORING’ EURO STRENGTH; UPGRADES 2020 GDP FORECAST

— Rate on Hold After Latest Governing Council Meeting By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) – The European Central Bank discussed the recent appreciation of the single currency at its latest governing council meeting, but declined to specify the risks of sustained euro strength to the nascent economic recovery. The governing council made a rare passing […]

DATA FLASH: US AUGUST PPI UP 0.3%; FOOD AND ENERGY DOWN

–Prices Ex. Food and Energy Rose 0.4%; Up 0.3% Excluding Trade Services as Well–Energy Prices Fall 0.1% After Two Gains; Gasoline Prices Down 1.4%–Food Prices Down 0.4%, Continuing Downward Trend–Initial Jobless Claims Unchanged at 884,000 in the August 5 Week By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – U.S. business prices rose by 0.3% in August, as […]

TEXT: ECB POLICY STATEMENT

FRANKFURT (MaceNews) – The following is the text of Thursday’s European Central Bank policy statement: At today’s meeting the Governing Council of the ECB took the following monetary policy decisions: (1) The interest rate on the main refinancing operations and the interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility will remain unchanged […]

STATUS CHECK: PANDEMIC LIFE RESUMES AFTER HOLIDAY

WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The following is Tuesday’s status check of developments in the U.S. that can influence economic, health and political outcomes: ·        Tuesday and life resumes such as it is, with the Labor Day holiday weekend a memory, a brief respite from what has become a cautious existence behind masks, closed doors, filling the […]

STATUS CHECK: LOOKING BEYOND THE ELECTION

WASHINGTON (MaceNews) –-The following is Sunday’s status check of developments in the U.S. that can influence economic, health and political outcomes: On this holiday weekend, instead of the usual recounting of the significant news of the day – of which there is none right now – today’s “Status Check” reflects on a speculative future beyond […]

DATA PREVIEW: IS INFLATION NOW A TREE FALLING IN THE FOREST?

By Kevin Kastner WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The highlight of next week, not counting a Monday holiday of course, will be the August readings of business and consumer inflation at the end of the week–indicators that were closely-watched before the COVID crisis. But now, thanks to much more pressing issues this year, inflation was put on […]