FED’S BOSTIC: READY TO ‘RECALIBRATE’ POLICY IF ECON STRONG BUT DON’T SEE 2021 HIKES
By Steven K. Beckner (MaceNews) – Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Raphael Bostic said Monday he would be willing to consider “recalibrating” the Fed’s monetary policy stance if the economy proves stronger than expected, but said he can’t envision raising the federal funds rate from near zero until next year at the earliest. Bostic, a […]
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 […]
ITALY GOVT FACES RISK OF COLLAPSE, SHOWDOWN FOR PM CONTE OVER EU AID – SOURCES
By Silvia Marchetti ROME (MaceNews) – Italy faces the risk of a government crisis right in the middle of an unprecedented pandemic as the minor Italia Viva party threatens to pull out of the ruling coalition if a new ruling pact isn’t reached. A meeting scheduled on Tuesday between coalition parties will be showdown time […]
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 […]
STATUS CHECK COMMENTARY: THE POST-SIEGE SCRAMBLE
WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The following is Thursday night’s status check of developments in the U.S. that can influence economic, health and political outcomes. · The White House scrambled Thursday to soften the accurate perceptions of President Trump’s actions that precipitated the physical attack on Congress as various threats to his remaining few days in office […]
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 […]
ITALY TO SEEK MORE FLEXIBILITY OVER NEW EU RULES ON NPL’S – COALITION SOURCES
By Silvia Marchetti ROME (MaceNews) – Italy wants greater flexibility over new tighter European-wide credit rules that could further worsen liquidity, according to ruling coalition sources. The new framework, that came into force on January 1, introduces stricter parameters for the ‘default’ classification on non-performing loans and so-called ‘calendar provisioning’ for write-offs, combining a 90-day […]
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 […]
STATUS CHECK COMMENTARY: WHAT NOW?
WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The following is Wednesday night’s status check of developments in the U.S. that can influence economic, health and political outcomes: The images from the Capitol Wednesday have been burned into the national consciousness where they will remain, to be engraved in the history books, a “dark moment” said President Elect Joe Biden. […]