Macroeconomic data, trends, and policy developments.
Coverage of key economic indicators, central bank policy decisions, inflation trends, labor data, and growth signals. This category focuses on the macroeconomic forces that shape markets, interest rates, and long-term capital allocation.
7,188 total articles
Micron's earnings and sales update signalled robust demand for high-bandwidth memory, including $22 billion of customer commitments, reigniting an AI-driven rally that pushed South Korean chipmakers and the KOSPI sharply higher. The report eased some investor concerns over stretched AI valuations, but bond-market rate bets and a weakening yen keep …
Bank of Japan board member Naoki Tamura has advocated for a systematic approach to monetary policy normalization, recommending interest rate increases at intervals of a few months. This strategy aims to lift the policy rate toward a neutral level estimated at 2%, which stands above the current 1% benchmark. Tamura anticipates persistent inflationar…
Asian stock markets posted significant gains on Thursday following robust earnings and forward-looking guidance from major semiconductor companies Micron and Qualcomm. The positive reports helped temper recent anxieties about stretched valuations in the artificial intelligence sector. Concurrently, oil prices retreated as geopolitical tensions ease…
The U.S. dollar has broken through significant technical resistance levels, posting its strongest monthly gain in nearly a year. Traders are aggressively positioning for higher short-term interest rates, driven by expectations of continued U.S. economic outperformance and a shift in Federal Reserve policy tone. This surge has rippled across global …
Japan's government is preparing to formally request that the Bank of Japan maintain a monetary policy stance that actively supports private sector demand. According to a draft of the nation's long-term economic blueprint, the administration prioritizes keeping borrowing costs low to foster price stability and economic expansion. This directive unde…
Dina Marchioni, director of money markets at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, recently addressed recent updates to the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) language regarding the ample reserves system. Speaking at the Crane's Money Fund Symposium, she emphasized that the new phrasing reflects minor adjustments rather than a strategic shift in …
The Brazilian government has signaled imminent policy adjustments designed to bolster the micro-entrepreneur (MEI) sector, a foundational component of the national economy. According to the Ministry of Entrepreneurship, these measures will be rolled out in the coming days and focus on three primary areas: recalibrating the income ceiling for benefi…
U.S. bond yields experienced a significant decline on Wednesday, driven by a sharp drop in oil prices to a four-month low. This energy slump effectively mitigated inflation concerns for markets, although the positive sentiment was not fully transmitted to equity markets. Persistent anxieties regarding technology sector valuations weighed heavily on…
Bank of Canada officials declined to label the recent downturn a recession when they left interest rates unchanged on June 10, while acknowledging weak output, labour market slack and a notable contraction driven in part by a drop in weapons-systems spending. The central bank expects growth to resume in the second quarter but signalled that its pol…
A recent central bank survey of nearly 100 economists signals that El Niño will add to inflationary pressures in Brazil, contributing an estimated 30 basis points to headline inflation in 2026 and 40 basis points in 2027. Respondents have only partially factored the shock into forecasts, and banks warn the effect on food prices could be rapid and s…
A U.S. district judge has directed the Trump administration to explain the installation of a tarp and scaffolding that now obscure the Kennedy Center's façade, after a court order required the removal of the former president's name. The administration must report the purpose and status of the covering by July 31, while legal proceedings continue in…
British 10-year government bond yields fell to their lowest level since mid-March, tracking a broader global rally in sovereign debt after Brent crude plunged. Longer-maturity gilts also moved down, while the UK bond market showed limited reaction to reports of a potential change in finance leadership as investors await policy details.
U.S. crude oil inventories, including the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, fell by over 15 million barrels in the week ending June 19 to 743.3 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration reported, marking the lowest combined level since October 1984. Excluding the SPR, crude stocks also reached a recent low, while regional inventories and Ea…
Romania's Social Democratic Party has announced it will support its leader, Sorin Grindeanu, for the prime ministership as parties continue negotiations to form a government after the collapse of a pro-European coalition. The political rupture, triggered when the Social Democrats left the coalition and aligned with the far right to remove Liberal P…
Bulgaria's finance minister presented a 2026 budget targeting a 5.7% deficit with a path to the European Union's 3% limit by 2028. Measures include spending cuts, salary caps at state firms and the phased removal of mandatory health insurance payments for select public servants. The proposal faces parliamentary approval and follows recent EU moves …
Gold-backed exchange-traded funds face renewed pressure from growing investor expectations of interest rate increases. Spot gold fell below $4,000 per ounce for the first time since November 2025, pressured by a stronger U.S. dollar and a shift toward tighter monetary policy expectations. Data show ETF outflows continued into June after net redempt…
The International Maritime Organization has defined two distinct transit corridors through the Strait of Hormuz to support an operation to evacuate more than 11,000 seafarers stranded in the Middle East. The plan allows passage either through waters under Iranian control or through areas coordinated by Oman and the United States, and requires shipm…
The United States posted a current account deficit of $226.8 billion in the first quarter, an increase from the revised fourth-quarter figure and larger than economists had forecast. The shortfall rose as primary income swung into deficit and primary income payments hit a record high, partially offset by a smaller goods and services trade deficit.
Chile's central bank opted to maintain its policy interest rate at 4.5% at the June meeting, a unanimous decision described in minutes released Wednesday. Board members characterized holding rates steady as "the only plausible option" given heightened global uncertainty. The minutes show the inflation outlook was largely unchanged and that policyma…
Indian and U.S. trade officials met in New Delhi to discuss possible routes toward an interim trade agreement. Officials said they have made substantial progress and remain committed to reaching an accord described as "balanced and commercially meaningful," even as legal rulings and ongoing investigations have complicated key elements of the negoti…
Russia's parliament approved changes to the tax code on Wednesday aimed at addressing widespread gasoline and diesel shortages that have followed Ukrainian drone strikes on oil refineries. The amendments authorize blending lower-quality fuel with straight-run gasoline, create subsidies for fuel imports tied to Indian delivery costs and prices, and …
Official statistics show Mexico's annual inflation rate at 3.55% in the first half of June, down from 4.11% in the first half of May and below the Reuters poll median forecast of 3.77%. On a month-on-month basis, consumer prices declined 0.11% in early June, while the core price index rose 0.19%, both softer than economists had expected.
Mexico's annual inflation rate slowed to 3.55% in the first half of June, down from 4.11% in the first half of May and below economists' forecasts. Month-on-month consumer prices fell 0.11% in the period, while the core price index rose 0.19%, slightly under expectations of 0.21%. The data were released by the national statistics agency.
Affluent buyers from Poland, the United States and the Gulf are increasingly purchasing high-end homes in Madrid and along Spain’s Mediterranean coast. Citing wars in Ukraine and the Middle East and political turbulence in the United States, these buyers are driving up prices in tourist provinces and intensifying demand for premium housing as inves…
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that the U.S. Treasury will oversee Iranian funds released under President Donald Trump’s interim agreement, with a substantial share intended for purchases of U.S. food and medical supplies. The administration says the arrangement is temporary and designed to pause hostilities and allow a 60-day negotiati…
