The Bank of Japan pulled the curtain on the most aggressive monetary easing program in modern history by ending the world's last negative interest rate along with its yield curve control mechanism, a widely expected move that weakened the yen. The central bank set a new policy rate range of between 0% and 0.1%, shifting from a -0.1% short-term interest rate, according to a statement after a two-day board gathering that concluded Tuesday. The bank said financial conditions will remain accommodative, indicating this isn't the beginning of an aggressive tightening cycle of the sort seen...
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told U.S. lawmakers on Thursday the central bank was "well aware" of the risks its tough monetary policy posed to workers, but said rate cuts would depend on the economy evolving as the Fed expects, with continued lower inflation. Powell, appearing before the Senate Banking Committee, was pressed by the panel's chair, Ohio Democrat Sherrod Brown, on why the Fed was not quicker to cut rates "to prevent workers from losing their jobs." "We're well aware of that risk, of course, and very conscious of avoiding it," Powell said. "If what we expect and what...
Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank (ECB), explains the ECB's decision to leave the key interest rates unchanged in March and responds to questions from the press. The European Central Bank (ECB) announced on Thursday that it left key rates unchanged following the March policy meeting. With this decision, the interest rate on the main refinancing operations and the interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility will stay at 4.50%, 4.75% and 4.00%, respectively. In the ECB Staff Projections released alongside the policy statement, the ECB...
The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged for a fourth meeting as a softer outlook for inflation and economic growth fed expectations for cuts to begin in June. The deposit rate was kept at a record 4% — as all economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted. The Governing Council reiterated that maintaining this level of borrowing costs for "sufficiently long" will make a "substantial contribution" to returning consumer-price growth to the 2% goal. "The Governing Council will continue to follow a data-dependent approach to determining the appropriate level and...
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reiterated to lawmakers that the US central bank is in no rush to cut interest rates until policymakers are convinced they have won their battle over inflation. In prepared testimony to a House panel Wednesday, the Fed chief said it will likely be appropriate to begin lower borrowing costs "at some point this year," but made clear they're not ready yet. The remarks echoed a consistent message from nearly every Fed official in recent weeks: The economy and labor market are strong, meaning policymakers have time to wait for...
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank is prepared to tighten policy further if appropriate. "We will make decisions about the extent of any additional policy and how...
In a statement after the September policy meeting on Tuesday, Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe said: "Some further tightening of monetary policy may be required to ensure that...