Central banking
Strategist says stock market may become a ‘meat-grinder of forlorn hope’ for dip-buyers
LONDON – Investors looking for value in the stock market during the ongoing downturn may be “deluding themselves,” according to Sean Corrigan, director at Cantillon Consulting. Fears that central banks will have to hike interest rates aggressively to curb inflation — at the risk of quashing growth as the global economy suffers concurrent hits from […]
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Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell confirmed by Senate for a second term
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell speaks at a news conference following a Federal Open Market Committee meeting on May 04, 2022 in Washington, DC. Powell announced the Federal Reserve is raising interest rates by a half-percentage point to combat record high inflation. Win Mcnamee | Getty Images As he and his colleagues engage in a […]
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SoftBank Vision Fund posts record $27 billion loss as tech stocks plummet
SoftBank Founder Masayoshi Son said there is “confusion in the world” and in the markets due to a number of factors including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, high inflation and central bank moves to raise interest rates. These factors have contributed to a record annual loss at SoftBank’s Vision Fund. Kentaro Takahashi | Bloomberg | Getty […]
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UK economy ‘only going to get worse’ as growth slowdown begins
The U.K. economy shrank by 0.1% in March and the situation is expected to worsen as the country’s cost-of-living crisis escalates. Tim Ireland | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images LONDON — A growth slowdown is underway in the U.K. after the economy shrank by 0.1% in March, with economists expecting further contractions this year. […]
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Hong Kong central bank steps in to support weakening currency, in first intervention since Oct. 2020
People wearing face masks walk by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority on March 4, 2020 in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority bought HK$1.586 billion ($202 million) from the market on Thursday to stop the local currency weakening and breaking its peg to the U.S. dollar, the de-facto central bank’s first intervention in 18 […]
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Senate confirms Lisa Cook as first Black woman on Federal Reserve Board
Dr. Lisa DeNell Cook, of Michigan, nominated to be a Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, speaks before a Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 3, 2022. Ken Cedeno | Reuters WASHINGTON — The Senate confirmed economist Lisa Cook on Tuesday […]
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ECB’s Lagarde cements expectations for upcoming rate hike
Lagarde has joined a growing number of ECB policymakers calling for a July rate hike. Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty Images The European Central Bank is likely to end its bond-buying stimulus programme early in the third quarter of this year, followed by a rate hike that could come just “a few weeks” […]
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Don’t panic? Strategists give reasons to stay invested despite market turmoil
Global stocks have endured a bruising week, and a difficult year so far, but some strategists believe the recent sell-off is unlikely to pave the way for a market capitulation. The S&P 500 closed Monday’s trade down more than 16% since the beginning of the year, and almost 12% in the second quarter alone. The […]
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Philippine central bank chief says he’s ‘not concerned’ about recent peso weakness
There are multiple reasons why the Philippines’ central bank chief, Benjamin Diokno, is “not concerned” about recent weakness in the peso against the dollar. As of Tuesday morning during Asia trading hours, the peso has weakened more than 2.5% against the greenback so far this year. It last traded at 52.38 per dollar, after Reuters […]
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Southeast Asia faces a ‘big risk’ of social unrest if food inflation surges, says economist
A supermarket in Indonesia on May 1, 2022. Relative to other countries, food consumption accounts for a large proportion of what people spend on in countries like Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, said economist Mohamed Faiz Nagutha. Adriana Adie | Nurphoto | Getty Images Southeast Asia will face a “big risk” of social unrest if […]
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