Sour Investor Mood Ahead of U.S. PPI Release March 13, 2025 U.S. equities got only a dead-cat bounce from Wednesday’s slightly better-than-expected consumer price data and are back showing red ahead of producer price figures due shortly. With his assortment of U.S. policy about-faces, President Trump has acquired a Grinch-like aura in the world financial…
Seventh Canadian Central Bank Rate Cut Since June 2024 March 12, 2025 At 2.75%, the Bank of Canada‘s policy interest rate will be 225 basis points below its former cyclical peak of 5.0% from July 2023 to June 2024. That cumulative decline was more than double the one percentage point reduction of the federal funds…
Some Reprieve in the Panic But Uneasiness Lingers March 12, 2025 U.S. stock futures were up 0.5-1.0% about an hour before the release of U.S. consumer price figures. In currency trading, the dollar rose 0.6% against the yen despite Bank of Japan Governor Ueda dispelling any notion of imminent direct intervention. He said recent yen…
Where’s the Bottom? March 11, 2025 Stock market action today has featured some tepid bottom-fishing after Monday’s debacle. In pre-open futures, the DOW, SPX and Nasdaq each bounced 0.3% higher. In Europe, the British Ftse and German Dax are up 0.2% so far, but French and Italian equities are just flat. Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.6%,…
What a Stock Market Difference Trump 2.0 Makes March 10, 2025 During the first seven weeks after Donald Trump took office as the 45th president of the United States, the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrials, and Nasdaq respectively logged gains of 4.6%, 5.4% and 5.5%. And so began what proved to be multiple years of…
Persistent Market Nervousness about U.S. Policy Changes March 10, 2025 (201) U.S. stock market futures show a decline of more than 1% this Monday, and the weighted dollar index has eased another 0.2%, bringing the decline since end-February to 3.4%. The yen gained 0.6% against the dollar overnight. While the 10-year Treasury yield has fallen…
Next Week’s Menu: March 8-14, 2025 March 7, 2025 Central Banks: Monetary policy reviews are scheduled inb Canada, Poland, Uzbekistan, Serbia and Peru. The Bank of Canada will publish its quarterly Monetary Policy Report with updated forecast, and Governor Macklem will hold a press conference afterward. ECB President Lagarde and Council members Lane, Nagel, De…
Central Bank Rate Changes in Turkey, Kazakhstan and Euroland March 7, 2025 Authorities at the National Bank of Kazakhstan lifted their policy interest rate today by 125 basis points to 16.5%, just 25 basis points south of the past cyclical high of 16.75% from December 2022 until August 2023. The rate had subsequently been cut…
China Trade Balance, Euroland GDP & Employment Growth, and U.S. Labor Market Situation Data March 7, 2025 With investors awaiting U.S. jobs figures due in just over a half hour, the dollar’s continues to show a soft tone, touching its lowest levels overnight in 17 weeks against the euro ($1.0871) and in a similar span…
Trump Speech, Lutnick’s Scoop, and Across-the-Board Large Rise in Long-Term European Interest Rates March 5, 2025 President Trump’s speech to a joint session of Congress last night lasted 99 minutes (a multi-decade record) but was predictable for the most part. The element of policy surprise was leaked by Commerce Secretary Lutnick, who indicated that 25%…