ECB SITS ON ITS HANDS. SAYS DECEMBER FORECASTS HOLD DESPITE LOCKDOWN
By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) – The European Central Bank left all policy instruments on hold at its latest rate-setting meeting, stressing the ECB’s most recent economic projections envisioned the risk of the strong Covid containment measures currently in place through much of Europe. Forecasts published in December “were predicated on lockdowns lasting through”the first […]
BOJ KEEPS EASING POLICY STANCE AMID PANDEMIC, SLIGHTLY MORE UPBEAT ON FY21, 22 GROWTH
–Central Bank Still Sees Under 1% Inflation in 2 Years, Well Below 2% Target By Max Sato (MaceNews) – The Bank of Japan has maintained its policy stance, as expected, after extending the period of special easing tools last month amid growing downside risks, while continuing to forecast that the domestic economy will recover part […]
JAPAN DEC EXPORTS POST 1ST RISE IN OVER 2 YEARS AMID UNCERTAIN OUTLOOK
By Mas Sato (MaceNews) – Japanese exports recorded the first year-on-year gain in just over two years, as largely expected, thanks to a recent gradual pickup in global demand, but the outlook for one of the key growth drivers for slow domestic recovery remains uncertain amid a surge in new coronavirus cases in many parts […]
STATUS CHECK: ONE OUT OF MANY, THE RENEWED PROMISE OF INAUGURATION DAY
WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – The following is Tuesday’s status check of developments in the U.S. that can influence economic, health and political outcomes. • Inauguration Day, and in an address tailored to the moment and maybe to the post-Trump era in the months ahead, Joe Biden kept his first day in office focused on the possibilities […]
BoA GLOBAL FUND MANAGER SURVEY: INVESTORS SEE STRONGER GROWTH IN 2021 AS WORLD RECOVERS FROM VIRUS
–Investors Eye Higher Stock Prices, Steeper Yield Curve, Rising Inflation by Vicki Schmelzer NEW YORK (MaceNews) – Global investors at the start of 2021 anticipated stronger growth in the months ahead as the world recovers from COVID-19, according to the findings of BofA Global Research’s monthly fund manager survey, released Wednesday. In line with […]
EUROZONE INFLATION STUCK IN THE RED AHEAD OF THURSDAY’S ECB MEETING
—HICP Falls by an Annual Rate of 0.3% in December, Marking the Fifth-Straight Decline By Laurie Laird LONDON (MaceNews) — Eurozone inflation remained stubbornly in the red at the close of last year, with the HICP index slumping by an annual pace of 0.3%, according to data released by Eurostat on Wednesday. That decline matches […]
ITALY’S CONTE WINS SENATE VOTE BUT LACKS STABLE MAJORITY TO PURSUE GOVT AGENDA
By Silvia Marchetti ROME (MaceNews) – Italy’s Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte Tuesday has won a key Senate confidence vote but with only a “relative majority” that hampers the government from fully ruling and efficiently pursuing its agenda. The final vote result was 156 yes and 140 no votes. The political crisis, triggered when the minor […]
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 […]