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☆ Here's everything you need to know about the Fed decision coming Wednesday
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-30 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Market pricing currently indicates an absolute certainty that the Fed will approve its first reduction in more than four years — when it meets Sept. 17-18. They don't want investors to start pricing in a rate cut coming in September and there's literally nothing else that could possibly happen," he said. "Opening the door for that rate cut is probably the most appropriate thing for them at this point," Reynolds added. Expectations for easingGlenmede expects that starting in September, the Fed could cut at each of the three remaining meetings. The Fed will not provide an update on its quarterly summary of economic projections at this meeting.

Persons: Jerome Powell, Chris Kleponis, they've, Michael Reynolds, Reynolds, there's, it'll, Powell, Goldman Sachs, David Mericle, Mericle, Bill English, We've Organizations: Banking, Housing, Urban, Capitol, AFP, Getty, Glenmede, Fed Locations: Washington ,, Yale, Jackson Hole , Wyoming

☆ A change to this one clause could be the most important part of the Fed meeting
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

"We heard at the December meeting that no official expected to raise rates further as a baseline outcome. And we've heard that Fed officials are beginning the discussions around rate cuts," Matthew Luzzetti, Deutsche Bank's chief U.S. economist, said in an interview. Now, there's considerably more uncertainty as multiple statements from Fed officials point to a more cautious approach about declaring victory over inflation. The inflation rate judged by core personal consumption expenditures prices, a U.S. Department of Commerce measure that the Fed favors, indicates the real funds rate to be around 2.4%. Fed officials figure the long-run real rate to be closer to 0.5%.

Persons: Jerome Powell, Liu Jie, we've, Matthew Luzzetti, Luzzetti, He'll, Bill English Organizations: Federal, Washington , D.C, Xinhua News Agency, Getty, Federal Reserve, Deutsche Bank, Bank's, Fed, U.S . Department of Commerce, Yale School of Management Locations: Washington ,

☆ ECB's Lagarde responds to scathing staff survey: 'I'm very proud and honored to lead the institution'
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-25 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde looks on as she attends the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, at the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium September 25, 2023. President Christine Lagarde on Thursday said she was "proud and honored" to leead the European Central Bank, after her leadership was slammed in a union-run survey of staff. The survey's qualitative responses suggested some staff believed she had created a negative atmosphere at the central bank, and that she spends "too much time on topics unrelated to monetary policy," IPSO said. Appearing unfazed, former politician and lawyer Lagarde said that the ECB conducted its own surveys in a "way that we can trust." The surveys are conducted by around 60% of employees, and also cover wages, respect in the workplace and workplace satisfaction, she said.

Persons: Christine Lagarde, IPSO, Lagarde Organizations: European Central Bank, European Parliament's, Economic, Monetary Affairs, ECB, IPSO Locations: Brussels, Belgium

☆ European Central Bank holds rates and trims its inflation forecast
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-14 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM - NOVEMBER 27: Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank speaks during the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) meeting in Brussels, Belgium on Nevember 27, 2023. (Photo by Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu via Getty Images)The European Central Bank on Thursday held interest rates steady for the second meeting in a row, as it revised its growth forecasts lower and announced plans to speed up the shrinking of its balance sheet. The latest staff macroeconomic projections see average real GDP expanding 0.6% in 2023, from a prior forecast of 0.7%. Headline inflation is meanwhile seen averaging 5.4% in 2023, 2.7% in 2024 and 2.1% in 2025. Members see core inflation, excluding energy and food, averaging 5% this year and 2.7% in 2024, 2.3% in 2025, and 2.1% in 2026.

Persons: Christine Lagarde, Dursun Aydemir, James Smith, CNBC's Joumanna Bercetche Organizations: European Central Bank, European Parliament's, Economic, Monetary Affairs, Getty, ECB, ING Locations: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, Brussels, Belgium, Anadolu

☆ Morning Bid: Markets turn risk-averse after bumper month
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Staff Acquire Licensing RightsA look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Wayne Cole. Most regional share markets are modestly lower, as are Wall Street and European futures. Data on EU inflation is also due Thursday, along with measures for Germany and Spain. Core EU inflation is forecast at 3.9%, the lowest since the middle of last year. If realised, this will support market wagers of no more rate hikes, and policy easing in 2024.

Persons: Wayne Cole, Asia, hasn't, Brent, Jerome Powell, Christine Lagarde, Edmund Klamann Organizations: REUTERS, Staff, Treasury, China PMI, Japan's Nikkei, Federal, Core, Fed, ECB, European Central Bank, EU, Economic, Monetary Affairs, Parliament, CBI, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, Wayne, China, Saudi Arabia, Spain

☆ ECB chief Lagarde admits her son lost crypto cash
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde addresses the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, at the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium March 20, 2023. REUTERS/Johanna Geron//File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsFRANKFURT, Nov 24 (Reuters) - No one is a prophet in their own land, including European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, who admitted on Friday that her son lost "almost all" of his investments in crypto assets, despite copious warnings. Lagarde has long railed against cryptocurrencies, calling them speculative, worthless and a tool often used by criminals for illicit activity. "It wasn't a lot but he lost it all, he lost about 60% of it," Lagarde added. The ECB chief has two sons in their mid-30s but did not say which one she was referring to.

Persons: Christine Lagarde, Johanna Geron, Lagarde, cryptocurrencies, Balazs Koranyi, Susan Fenton Organizations: European Central Bank, Parliament's, Economic, Monetary Affairs, REUTERS, Rights, ECB, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Belgium, Frankfurt

☆ ECB's Lagarde: Increasing signs that the global economy is fragmenting into competing blocs
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Matt Clinch | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde looks on as she attends the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, at the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium September 25, 2023. Yves Herman | ReutersEuropean Central Bank President Christine Lagarde on Friday said that Europe is now at a critical juncture, with deglobalization, demographics and decarbonization looming on the horizon. "There are increasing signs that the global economy is fragmenting into competing blocs," she said at the European Banking Congress, according to a transcript. "As our societies age, we will need to deploy new technologies so that we can produce greater output with fewer workers. And as our climate warms, we will need to advance the green transition without any further delays."

Persons: Christine Lagarde, Yves Herman, Lagarde Organizations: European Central Bank, European Parliament's, Economic, Monetary Affairs, Reuters, Central Bank, European Banking Congress Locations: Brussels, Belgium, Europe

☆ BOJ looks to corp profits, household incomes to boost wages, prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Japanese national flag is hoisted atop the headquarters of Bank of Japan in Tokyo, Japan September 20, 2023. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsTOKYO, Nov 14 (Reuters) - The Bank of Japan (BOJ) will aim to create conditions for raising prices and lifting wages through increases in corporate profits and household incomes instead of cost-push inflation, its deputy governor Shinichi Uchida said on Tuesday. "The BOJ will continue to support economic activity and strive to create an environment wherein it's easy to raise wages," he said during a debate at the parliament's upper house committee on financial affairs. Even with upward pressure on long-term interest rates, the BOJ does not believe the 10-year yield will significantly exceed 1%, said Kazuhiro Masaki, director-general of the central bank's monetary affairs department. Reporting by Satoshi Sugiyama; Editing by Tom Hogue & Shri NavaratnamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Issei Kato, Shinichi Uchida, Kazuhiro Masaki, Satoshi Sugiyama, Tom Hogue Organizations: Bank of Japan, REUTERS, Rights, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan

ECB chief Christine Lagarde may stick with the high-for-longer mantra that has pushed up long-dated bond yields. A weakening economy meanwhile suggests the need for further tightening is limited but the ECB is likely to push back against rate-cut speculation. ECB chief economist Philip Lane says the ECB will need time, possibly until next spring, before it can be confident that inflation is coming down. The ECB expects headline inflation to ease to 3.2% in 2024 from an average of 5.6% in 2023. Oil price moves, inflation outlook shifts4/ What does the ECB do if things go wrong with Italy?

Persons: Christine Lagarde, Johanna Geron, Francis Yared, Philip Lane, Lagarde, PEPP, Reinhard Cluse, Chris Jeffrey, Cluse, ING's Brzeski, Dhara Ranasinghe, Stefano Rebaudo, Naomi Rovnick, Susan Fenton Organizations: European Central Bank, Parliament's, Economic, Monetary Affairs, REUTERS, ECB, Deutsche Bank, Reuters Graphics Reuters, UBS, Reuters, Legal, General Investment Management, Treasury, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Belgium, Europe, United States, Italy, Germany

☆ ECB's Lagarde: confident over 2% inflation target and Europe's winter gas situation
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSummary Interview done on Oct 2, published on Oct 8Lagarde: confident over ECB's 2% inflation targetLagarde relatively confident over Europe's gas situationPARIS, Oct 8 (Reuters) - European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said in an interview published on Sunday that she was confident the ECB would meet its target of getting inflation back down to 2%, and relatively confident over Europe's gas reserves situation. Lagarde added the fact that inflation was "currently falling significantly" was one of several reason as to why she was not pessimistic regarding the short-term economic outlook. She added that other reasons for this were economic reforms underway in Europe, and because Europe's gas reserves situation was better than before. And, just one year ago, who would have thought that we would succeed in replenishing more than 90% of our gas reserves by September 2023?," said Lagarde. "This allows us to look towards the coming winter, if not calmly, then at least with a lot more confidence," she added.

Persons: Christine Lagarde, Yves Herman, Lagarde, Sudip Kar, Toby Chopra Organizations: European Central Bank, European Parliament's, Economic, Monetary Affairs, REUTERS, Central Bank, ECB, Tribune, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Belgium, PARIS, Europe

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The head of the European Central Bank said Monday that interest rates will stay high enough to restrict business activity for “as long as necessary” to beat back inflation. Christine Lagarde said rates would stay high because upward pressure on prices “remains strong” in the 20 countries that use the euro currency. “And yes, we know that 30% — 30% — of the households in the member states have variable interest rate mortgages. Analysts think the ECB may be done raising rates given signs of increasing weakness in the European economy. Higher rates are central banks' chief weapon against excessive inflation.

Persons: Christine Lagarde, “, ” Lagarde, ”, Lagarde Organizations: European Central Bank, European, ECB, Analysts, Bank of England, U.S . Federal Reserve Locations: FRANKFURT, Germany, Russia, Ukraine

☆ ECB's Lagarde defends bank supervisor pick after pushback
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELLA, Sept 15 (Reuters) - European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde defended on Friday the bank's pick to head its bank supervision arm, despite the European Parliament's preference for a rival candidate to oversee a 26 trillion euro banking sector. Lagarde said that the 26-member Governing Council, who selected Buch, took the committee's opinion into account but noted that the committee had no veto but merely an opportunity to formulate an opinion. Once that opinion was received, policymakers followed the letter of the law in the selection process, Lagarde added. The key point of contention is that Buch has relatively limited experience in bank supervision, having joined the ECB's Supervisory Board only this year, while Delgado has spent decades in the field. Buch must now go back to the same committee for a public hearing, tentatively scheduled for 0800 GMT on Wednesday.

Persons: SANTIAGO, Christine Lagarde, Claudia Buch, Margarita Delgado, Buch, Lagarde, Delgado, Jan Strupczewski, Balazs Koranyi, Chizu Organizations: SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELLA, Central Bank, ECB, Bank of Spain, Economic, Monetary Affairs, ECB's, Thomson Locations: Bank

The U.S. economy has avoided a threatened banking crisis and financial markets have not only aligned with the Federal Reserve's tight-credit policies but of late even helped the process by bidding up market interest rates. "I think Powell’s main effort is going to be explaining to what degree you want to hold (interest rates) higher for longer in the current outlook." Investors in contracts tied to the Fed's benchmark interest rate currently expect the Fed to begin reducing the policy rate next year from the current level set between 5.25% and 5.5%. Fed officials in fact have begun discussing the possibility of rate cuts down the road, at least in the context of steadily falling inflation. If inflation does decline as expected, Fed officials including Powell have suggested rate reductions might be appropriate to maintain a roughly constant inflation-adjusted "real rate."

Persons: Jerome Powell, Jackson, Jim Urquhart, JACKSON, Antulio Bomfim, Powell, who've, isn't, Adam Posen, William English, Donald Kohn, Howard Schneider, Andrea Ricci Organizations: REUTERS, Federal, Kansas, Fed, Northern Trust, Bank of England's, Committee, Peterson Institute for International Economics, Yale School of Management, Brookings Institution, Thomson Locations: Teton, Jackson , Wyoming, U.S, , Wyoming, Washington

☆ Insight: BOJ makes bold shift as yen risks grow too big to ignore
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Leika Kihara | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

The BOJ's decision shook markets on Friday and contrasted sharply with Ueda's more cautious comments in recent months about the dangers of retreating too quickly from accommodative Kuroda-era policies. "There's also a small but probable risk of inflation overshooting in Japan, which gave the BOJ reason to act." NEW PRIORITIESThe BOJ's policy decision last week signalled to investors that it would now allow the 10-year government bond yield to move closer to 1% before it intervenes. 'BIT BY BIT'The shift in thinking gained momentum at the BOJ's June policy meeting, but not enough to turn the tide. It was a test case, or a preliminary exercise, toward future policy normalisation," said former BOJ board member Takahide Kiuchi.

Persons: Issei Kato, Kazuo Ueda, Haruhiko Kuroda, Fumio, accommodative Kuroda, Ueda, YCC, There's, Hirokazu Matsuno, Seiji Adachi, Asahi Noguchi, Ryozo Himino, Shinichi Uchida, Uchida, Masato Kanda, Kanda, Takahide, Leika Kihara, Takaya Yamaguchi, Takahiko Wada, Kentaro Sugiyama, Yoshifumi, Sam Holmes Organizations: Bank of Japan, REUTERS, TOKYO, Bank, Ueda, Reuters, BIT, Asahi, Nikkei, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan

☆ ECB's Lagarde sees no peak in core inflation despite 'moderation'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde walks on the day of addressing the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, at the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium June 5, 2023. REUTERS/Yves HermanFRANKFURT, June 5 (Reuters) - European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde on Monday acknowledged "signs of moderation" in core inflation in the euro zone but reaffirmed it was too early to call a peak in that key gauge of price growth. Lagarde's comments were likely to cement market expectations for more interest rate increases from the ECB this month and the next despite a sharp fall in inflation last month. "The latest available data suggest that indicators of underlying inflationary pressures remain high and, although some are showing signs of moderation, there is no clear evidence that underlying inflation has peaked," Lagarde told European lawmakers. Lagarde conceded that the effects of past rate hikes "were starting to materialise" and were likely to "strengthen in the coming years".

Persons: Christine Lagarde, Yves Herman FRANKFURT, Lagarde, Francesco Canepa, Balazs Koranyi, Bernadette Baum Organizations: European Central Bank, European Parliament's, Economic, Monetary Affairs, REUTERS, Central Bank, ECB, Thomson Locations: Brussels, Belgium

☆ Morning Bid: Hawkish pause for thought?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Asian equities are carrying on the global rally, setting Europe up nicely to do the same. The Fedspeak that has been such a big driver of markets in recent weeks, will go quiet in the days ahead with officials in a blackout period. There's been a slight pullback in expectations for further tightening after last week's data showed euro-area CPI cooling more than analysts predicted. Lagarde said that day that there was still "ground to cover" in the tightening cycle. The lira weakened more than 1% to 21.12 per dollar in thin Asian trading, approaching the record low of 21.80 marked last week.

Persons: Kevin Buckland, Chris Weston, Christine Lagarde, There's, Lagarde, Ignazio Visco, Brent, Tayyip Erodogan, Mehmet Simsek, Sam Holmes Organizations: Fed, Reuters Graphics Reuters, ECB, Economic, Monetary Affairs, Bank of Italy, PPI, Thomson Locations: Europe, United States, Saudi Arabia, OPEC, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Italy, France

☆ Explainer: How the Fed might act in a U.S. default
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Despite Powell's protestations, the Fed would have a role in trying to limit the harm to financial stability. In past debt-ceiling standoffs - in 2011 and 2013 - Fed staff and policymakers developed a playbook that would likely provide a starting point. English, however, had envisioned the bonds being accepted by the Fed at a market price that would likely be impaired by their defaulted status. But, following the bank failures in March, the Fed has a new bank lending facility - one that allows securities with impaired prices to be pledged at face value. Ben Bernanke, Fed chair at the time, quipped: "So you are willing to accept 'loathsome' under some certain circumstances," drawing laughter from others on the call.

Feb 14 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to name Federal Reserve Vice Chair Lael Brainard as his top economic policy adviser as early as Tuesday, a source familiar with the matter said, as the 2024 elections approach. Brainard, an experienced fiscal and monetary affairs official, would replace White House National Economic Council (NEC) Director Brian Deese, who has announced his resignation. In addition, Biden confidant Jared Bernstein is expected to replace Cecilia Rouse as chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, the source said. The White House declined to comment. Biden's overhaul of his top economic team comes as the Fed is still trying to glide inflation down without causing a recession.

When asked about the matter at a news conference after the end of the U.S. central bank's latest policy meeting on Wednesday, Powell declined to say whether Fed officials had begun planning for a possible default. "If there were pressures pushing the funds rate higher the (Fed market desk) would automatically add reserves to deal with that," William English, a Yale School of Management professor, said in a recent interview. As head of the Fed's monetary affairs division at the time, it was English who briefed officials in 2011 on possible options. The approach "appeared acceptable" to Fed officials previously, and was included in a draft statement the central bank had prepared in the event a debt limit compromise was not reached. But I don't want to say what I would and wouldn't do, if we have to actually deal with a catastrophe."

☆ Digital euro will be free but limited in scope, ECB says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"The digital euro would be a public good," Panetta told the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. "It would therefore make sense for its basic services to be free of charge – for example when using the digital euro to pay another person, as is the case for cash." If issued, the ECB could develop its own standalone app for payments or may allow commercial banks to integrate the digital euro into their own platforms. "The ECB would not set any limitations on where, when or to whom people can pay with a digital euro," Panetta said. The ECB is still only investigating the creation of a digital euro and actual issuance is still years away.

WASHINGTON, Jan 20 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve is set to again slow the pace of its interest rate increases at a Jan. 31-Feb. 1 policy meeting while also signaling that its battle against inflation is far from over. Throughout last year, the Fed's rapid series of rate hikes were announced in a statement that also promised "ongoing increases" until rates were "sufficiently restrictive to return inflation to 2%." Fed officials were surprised in 2021 by the persistence of inflation that at one point was more than triple their 2% target. The unemployment rate is currently 3.5%, a level seen only rarely since World War Two. "Thus, I anticipate the need for further rate increases."

☆ ECB hikes rates, sees significant increases ahead as it announces plan to shrink balance sheet
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde attends a hearing of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs in the European Parliament on November 28, 2022 in Brussels, Belgium. The European Central Bank opted for a smaller rate hike at its Thursday meeting, taking its key rate from 1.5% to 2%. It hiked by 75 basis points in October and September and by 50 basis points in July, bringing rates out of negative territory for the first time since 2014. The central bank said it was working on inflation forecasts that had been "significantly revised up," and sees inflation remaining above its 2% target until 2025. However, they noted the ECB was lagging other central banks in reducing its balance sheet and that reinvestments under its pandemic emergency purchase program would continue.

Nov 28 (Reuters) - Euro zone government bond yields were higher on Monday after rare protests in China over the country's strict zero-COVID policies clouded the outlook for global growth and inflation. "The market is more concerned about the impact on inflation than the impact on growth," he added. Germany's 10-year government bond yield was up 4 basis points (bps) at 2.008%, after rising 12 bps on Friday. The gap between the 2-year and 10-year government bond yields rose to -20 bps. Italy's 10-year yield rose 8 bps to 3.94% pushing the closely watched spread between Italian and German 10-year yields wider by 5 bps to 191 bps.

☆ London copper price hits two-month low on strong dollar
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Reuters Staff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

(Reuters) - London copper prices hit a more than two-month low on Monday, as a stronger dollar made greenback-priced metals more expensive to holders of other currencies. FILE PHOTO: A worker checks copper wires at Truong Phu cable factory in northern Hai Duong province, outside Hanoi, Vietnam August 11, 2017. LME aluminium hit an 18-month low of $2,151 a tonne, zinc eased 0.4% to $2,995.50 a tonne by 0326 GMT while tin rose 1.5% to $20,540 a tonne. The most-traded October copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange declined 2.7% to 60,840 yuan ($8,500.17) a tonne. ShFE nickel dropped 3.1% to 188,620 yuan a tonne, tin fell 3.1% to 178,510 yuan a tonne, aluminium declined 1.9% to 18,380 yuan a tonne and zinc was down 2.2% to 24,430 yuan a tonne.

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