Central banking
Biden to nominate Michael Barr as Fed bank regulator in second attempt to fill post
Michael Barr, assistant secretary for financial institutions with U.S. Treasury, speaks during the Advisory Council on Financial Capability meeting at the Treasury Department in Washington, D.C., Nov. 30, 2010. Andrew Harrer | Bloomberg | Getty Images President Joe Biden will nominate Michael Barr, a former Treasury Department official, to be the Federal Reserve’s top regulator […]
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In an unexpected move, China holds back on cutting key rate
The metropolis of Shanghai, where many foreign businesses are located, entered a two-part lockdown this week as municipal authorities sought to control an outbreak in China’s worst Covid wave in two years. Hector Retamal | Afp | Getty Images China’s central bank kept a key interest rate unchanged on Friday in a surprise move, despite […]
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ECB confirms the end of its bond buying in the third quarter as inflation surges
The European Central Bank faces a tough balancing act, with inflation running at record highs while the war in Ukraine casts a shadow over the growth outlook. Thomas Lohnes | Getty Images News | Getty Images The European Central Bank on Thursday kept its monetary policy unchanged but confirmed it will end its bond buying […]
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Europe to see a sharp recession if Russia’s Putin shuts off the gas taps
The Nord Stream 2 offshore pipeline, the $11 billion project designed to double the flow of gas between Russia and Germany, is now unused and abandoned. Germany halted certification of the pipeline altogether after Russia officially recognized two pro-Russian regions in eastern Ukraine, setting a pretext for the invasion that would ensue. Axel Schmidt | […]
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India’s central bank pivots focus from growth to fighting inflation as prices rise
Customers browsing through goods at a store on the outskirts of New Delhi, India, in February as prices continue to rise, with inflation figures for March nearing 7%. Anindito Mukherjee/Bloomberg via Getty Images | Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images Inflation in India is up sharply and signs point to a continuing upward trend, analysts […]
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South Korea’s central bank unexpectedly raises rates as prices surge
Signage at the Bank of Korea headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday, Nov. 22, 2021. South Korea’s central bank raised its policy rate to the highest since August 2019 on Thursday in an unexpected move. SeongJoon Cho | Bloomberg | Getty Images South Korea’s central bank raised its policy rate to the highest since […]
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Fed’s Waller sees likelihood of multiple half-point interest rate hikes ahead
Getting inflation under control will require raising interest rates at a faster pace than normal even though the pace of price increases probably has peaked, Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said Wednesday. That means the central bank likely will hike short-term rates by half a percentage point, or 50 basis points, at its meeting in […]
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UK inflation hits 30-year high of 7% as energy prices surge
The 7% annual rise for U.K. inflation in March is the highest since 1992. Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images LONDON — U.K. inflation came in at an annual 7% in March, its highest for 30 years. Consumer prices rose by 1.1% month-on-month, outstripping expectations for a 0.7% climb in a Reuters poll of economists, which […]
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Want to understand Turkey’s brutal inflation? Look at the price of plums
Shoppers stroll the aisles of a bazaar in Konya, Turkey. The country is experiencing brutal inflation, with food and non-alcoholic beverage prices rising 70.3% year over year for March. Diego Cupolo | Nurphoto | Getty Images For Turks, the humble green plum (“erik” in Turkish) represents the start of spring. An intensely sour fruit, it’s […]
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Russia’s war in Ukraine means there’ll be no return to normality for Europe’s economy
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish President Andrzej Duda attend a news conference ahead of a Weimar Triangle meeting to discuss the ongoing Ukraine crisis, in Berlin, Germany, February 8, 2022. Hannibal Hanschke | Reuters The war in Ukraine and the ensuing economic sanctions imposed on Russia will cause far bigger […]
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