Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said on Thursday he continues to believe the U.S. central bank should cut interest rates at the end of this month amid mounting risks to the economy and the strong likelihood that tariff-induced inflation will not drive a persistent rise in price pressures. "It makes sense to cut the FOMC's policy rate by 25 basis points two weeks from now," Waller told a gathering of the Money Marketeers of New York University. "I see the hard and soft data on economic activity and the labor market as consistent: The economy is still growing, but its momentum...
Stocks extended losses after Jerome Powell signaled the Federal Reserve is in no rush to cut rates as the economy is holding up. The equity market closed near session lows, US two-year yields spiked and the dollar climbed after Powell's remarks. Traders dialed back bets on a December rate reduction to around 55% — from 80% in the previous day. "Powell's speech was hawkish," said Neil Dutta at Renaissance Macro Research. "I think they will still cut in December since policy remains restrictive and they want to get to...
European stocks extended morning gains and closed sharply higher on Thursday, trimming the losses from the prior two sessions with support from a batch of earnings, while markets continued to gauge the impact that the new Republican-led US government may have on the global corporate sector. The Stoxx 50 added 1.9% to close at 4,830, and the Stoxx 600 rose 1.1% to close at 507. ASML, the Stoxx 50's heaviest company, soared 7% after the company forecasted sales to grow by 8% to 14% over the coming five years. Also, Siemens added 4.9% after posting a higher-than-expected profit although it...
Stocks struggled to make headway, following a furious post-election rally that spurred calls for a breather amid signs of buyer fatigue. Equities wavered near all-time highs, with the S&P 500 remaining close to technically overbought levels. That's after a surge that drove the benchmark gauge up 25% this year. Several measures highlight strong trader optimism, including the latest figures from the American Association of Individual Investors, which showed a spike in bullish sentiment last week. In the run-up to Jerome Powell's speech on Thursday, traders...
The Hang Seng plunged 388 points, or 2.0%, to close at 19,436 on Thursday, marking its fifth session of declines and hitting a seven-week low amid sharp declines across all sectors. It was the first time the Hang Seng remained fully open despite the bad weather, with many participants reluctant to enter any trades. Traders shrugged off China's latest efforts to reverse a property slump through tax incentives on home and land transactions. Concerns about Sino-U.S. tensions also grew as China tightened its grip on rare earth exports. The technology index slumped about 3%, taking its losses...
The Nikkei 225 index fell 0.48% to close at 38,536, while the broader Topix index fell 0.27% to 2,701 on Thursday, reversing gains from earlier in the session, weighed down by losses in the technology sector following similar moves on Wall Street overnight. Investors also continued to assess the potential impact of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's policies on the Japanese economy, particularly on export-driven industries. Meanwhile, traders kept a close eye on a sharply weaker yen, which could provide support for local equities in the near term. Technology stocks led the losses, with...
According to a statement by the Federal Reserve (Fed), Fed Chair Jerome Powell met with United States (US) President Donald Trump on Thursday, where the head of the Fed reiterated that the Fed's...
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) maintained its cash rate at 4.1% during its April meeting, holding borrowing costs unchanged after slashing 25 bps in the February meeting, aligning with market...