Economy

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.

Articles

4,093 total articles

Trump Weighs Backing Armed Factions Inside Iran as Regional Contacts Intensify

Trump Weighs Backing Armed Factions Inside Iran as Regional Contacts Intensify

U.S. officials say President Trump is considering backing Iranian groups willing to use force against the Tehran government. He has held direct talks with Kurdish leaders based in Iran and remains in contact with other local figures, while White House officials say no final decision has been made on providing weapons, training or intelligence.

Iran Conflict Delays Market Expectations for Fed Rate Cuts

Iran Conflict Delays Market Expectations for Fed Rate Cuts

Markets pared back expectations that the Federal Reserve will begin trimming interest rates before September after air strikes linked to the U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran lifted oil prices and provoked heavy selling in rate-sensitive assets. With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed and global crude flows curtailed, traders have reduced the…

Reeves' Budget Update: Lower Inflation and Borrowing, Softer Near-Term Growth

Reeves' Budget Update: Lower Inflation and Borrowing, Softer Near-Term Growth

In a budget update to parliament, finance minister Rachel Reeves set out revised forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility that show Britain's inflation and borrowing will be lower than previously expected by the fiscal watchdog, while economic growth forecasts for the near term were reduced. The update, delivered against a backdrop of Mi…

Reeves Presents Weaker Growth Outlook as Unemployment Forecasts Rise

Reeves Presents Weaker Growth Outlook as Unemployment Forecasts Rise

Finance minister Rachel Reeves set out a revised, weaker growth path for the U.K. in a budget update, with the Office for Budget Responsibility cutting its 2026 GDP forecast and projecting a higher unemployment peak. The OBR attributed labour market weakness to new entrants struggling to find work, and warned of persistent weak demand as output fal…

Reeves Seeks Economic Calm as Middle East Escalation Rattles Markets

Reeves Seeks Economic Calm as Middle East Escalation Rattles Markets

In a budget update delivered to parliament, finance minister Rachel Reeves pledged to shield the UK economy from external shocks and maintain policy stability. New official forecasts from Britain’s fiscal watchdog show lower inflation and borrowing than previously estimated, though growth for the year was revised down to 1.1% from 1.4%. The fiscal …

Reeves: UK fiscal headroom rises to 23.6 billion pounds for 2029/30

Reeves: UK fiscal headroom rises to 23.6 billion pounds for 2029/30

Finance minister Rachel Reeves said the government’s margin for meeting its principal fiscal objective at the end of the decade has increased to 23.6 billion pounds for 2029/30, up from an almost 22 billion pound estimate in November. The Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecasts underpin the change, but they were compiled before a recent spike …

Trump Says U.S. Munitions Stocks Sufficient to Fight Wars 'Forever'

Trump Says U.S. Munitions Stocks Sufficient to Fight Wars 'Forever'

President Donald Trump declared that the United States has a near limitless inventory of munitions and can wage wars "forever" using existing supplies, comments made as U.S. and Israeli military operations in Iran entered their fourth day. Trump gave few operational details but said the campaign was projected to last four to five weeks and that cur…

UK growth forecast trimmed to 1.1% for 2026, OBR shifts timing of rebound

UK growth forecast trimmed to 1.1% for 2026, OBR shifts timing of rebound

The Office for Budget Responsibility has reduced its projected UK GDP growth for 2026 to 1.1%, Finance Minister Rachel Reeves said in a half-yearly fiscal update. The OBR's profile now shows slightly slower expansion in 2026 with stronger growth of 1.6% pencilled in for both 2027 and 2028 and 1.5% for 2029 and 2030.

Markets Push Back on Fed Cuts as Middle East Tensions Lift Oil Prices

Markets Push Back on Fed Cuts as Middle East Tensions Lift Oil Prices

Traders have reduced their expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts this year after a spike in energy prices tied to widening U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran raised the prospect of higher inflation. Futures indicate a sharply lower probability of a June cut, a rising chance of a July move, and only modest easing priced in by year-end. Federal Res…

BCA: Markets Should Stay Defensive as Iran Conflict Deepens Energy Risk

BCA: Markets Should Stay Defensive as Iran Conflict Deepens Energy Risk

BCA Research advises investors to avoid fading the recent rise in oil prices or rushing back into equities, characterizing the Iran-related geopolitical shock as ongoing and likely to have larger economic consequences. The firm assigns a high weighted probability to a substantial oil supply shock and is maintaining defensive positioning, including …

Qatar Says Iranian Threats Extend Across Its Territory as Tensions Rise

Qatar Says Iranian Threats Extend Across Its Territory as Tensions Rise

Qatar's foreign ministry has warned that Iranian targets are not confined to military installations but encompass the country's entire territory. Doha said it had received no prior notification of incoming missile strikes, has no active communications with Iran, and confirmed the downing of Iranian jets that entered Qatari airspace. Attempts to hit…

Fed Wrestles with AI’s Uneven Effects on Jobs and Prices

Fed Wrestles with AI’s Uneven Effects on Jobs and Prices

Federal Reserve officials acknowledge that artificial intelligence is reshaping the economy but remain divided over how quickly and to what extent those changes will affect employment and inflation. Recent corporate layoffs tied to AI, rising Fed attention to the technology in research and speeches, and competing views among policymakers and commen…

U.S. Housing Shortfall Widens to 4.03 Million Units in 2025, Report Finds

U.S. Housing Shortfall Widens to 4.03 Million Units in 2025, Report Finds

Realtor.com's 2026 Housing Supply Gap report shows the U.S. housing deficit increased to an estimated 4.03 million homes in 2025 from 3.80 million in 2024. The gap widened as household formation rose sharply while housing starts and completions declined, reinforcing a pattern of underbuilding that Realtor.com says has constrained supply and pushed …

Euro-area inflation ticks up ahead of potential oil-driven shock

Euro-area inflation ticks up ahead of potential oil-driven shock

Euro zone consumer prices rose more than economists expected in February, lifting both headline and underlying inflation measures but keeping headline inflation below the European Central Bank's 2% goal. Officials are now monitoring a recent more-than-10% jump in oil prices tied to the Middle East conflict and assessing how quickly that move could …

UK energy price surge complicates Bank of England's path to cutting rates

UK energy price surge complicates Bank of England's path to cutting rates

A sharp rise in oil and natural gas prices is likely to push U.K. consumer inflation higher while weakening near-term growth, according to J.P. Morgan. The bank's analysis shows that oil at $78 per barrel and gas trading near 95 pence per therm would lift CPI modestly and could prompt the Bank of England to delay planned interest-rate reductions un…

Stournaras urges ECB to remain flexible as Iran conflict clouds inflation outlook

Stournaras urges ECB to remain flexible as Iran conflict clouds inflation outlook

Yannis Stournaras, governor of the Bank of Greece and an ECB policymaker, said the European Central Bank should keep policy options open as the unfolding war on Iran could push inflation higher if it continues. He recommended patience, arguing that the conflict's ultimate impact on prices and output hinges on how long and how deep the fighting beco…

Trump Says U.K. Ties Have Frayed After Starmer Hesitates on Military Support

Trump Says U.K. Ties Have Frayed After Starmer Hesitates on Military Support

Donald Trump told a British tabloid that the bilateral relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom has worsened after Prime Minister Keir Starmer initially declined to provide military backing for strikes on Iran. Trump said the partnership is "not what it was" and described the situation as "very sad," while criticizing Starmer o…