Analysis: Currencies

Central bank body urges policy revamps to heed COVID lessons

Central bank body the Bank for International Settlements has urged the likes of the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank to revamp the way they approach interest rate setting to avoid the...

Ontario cancels Starlink contract in latest Canadian tariffs protest

The Canadian province of Ontario on Monday announced it was cancelling a C$100 million contract with Elon Musk's Starlink, the latest retaliatory move against tariffs announced by U.S. President...

Trade war fears roil shares of US auto majors, Big Tech after Trump tariffs

Shares of automakers and megacap tech stocks bore the brunt of a wider equity pullback on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered sweeping tariffs against Mexico, Canada and China, sparking...

Currencies: Tariffs have taken the wind out of the sails (for now)

All was well until the announcement of an effective tariff increase. This should not have come as a surprise to the financial community, but clearly it did. Lulled into sweet illusions of leniency,...

Americans have high hopes for Trump's economy, Gallup poll shows

Americans are more bullish on the U.S. economy and the stock market and more hopeful about falling inflation and borrowing costs than they have been in a decade or more, including in the heyday of...

Tariffs worry Wall Street over earnings hit, inflation pressure

Investors are bracing for a looming hit to U.S. corporate profits and pressure on inflation after President Donald Trump on Saturday signed an executive order imposing tariffs on its largest trading...

Canada's Trudeau announces counter tariffs

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Saturday Canada would impose 25% tariffs on C$155 billion of U.S. goods in response to U.S. tariffs. C$30 billion would take effect from Tuesday and...

US labor costs rise moderately in fourth quarter

U.S. labor costs rose marginally in the fourth quarter, offering some comfort to Federal Reserve officials after progress lowering inflation stalled at the end of 2024. The employment...

US inflation rise in December; consumer spending accelerates

U.S. prices increased in December while consumer spending surged, suggesting that the Federal Reserve could delay cutting interest rates for some time this year. The personal...

Canada's GDP contracts by 0.2% in November, likely rebounded following month

Canada's economy contracted more than expected in November as activity across a majority of sectors shrank due to work stoppages across inland transportation and at ports, Statistics Canada said on...

US equity funds draw first weekly inflow in four weeks

U.S. equity funds attracted inflows for the first time in four weeks in the week through Jan. 29, spurred by hopes of interest rate cuts following comments from President Donald Trump, and a rebound...

Beethoven or birds? ECB seeks ideas for new banknote designs

The European Central Bank is seeking a new design for euro banknotes, with possible subjects including great cultural figures like German composer Ludwig van Beethoven, or birds and rivers. ...

Who are the BOJ's doves and hawks?

TOKYO -The fading shadow of reflationists in the Bank of Japan, and the latest addition to the board of an academic favouring an end to ultra-low interest rates, will likely bring the central bank's...

Israeli startups make global plans after key role in war

The drone that tracked Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and filmed him as he lay dying in footage beamed around the world last October was made by Israeli startup Xtend, according to media reports, one of...

US pending home sales drop to snap four months of gains

Contracts to buy U.S. previously owned homes fell in December to snap a four-month streak of increases, with particularly sharp declines in the pricier Northeast and West regions as higher mortgage...

US weekly jobless claims decline more than expected

The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, pointing to low layoffs though job opportunities are becoming scarce for those who are out...

Fed guided by economic goals and the law, not politics, says Powell

Fielding a range of questions about the imprint of the Trump administration on the U.S. central bank, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday said that politics had not prompted the Fed's...

Fed stands pat, leans hawkish with omission of inflation-progress reference

The Federal Reserve left interest rates in the 4.25% to 4.50% target range on Wednesday and gave little insight into when further easing may take place in an economy where inflation remains above...

Instant View: Bank of Canada cuts benchmark rate by 25 basis points

The Bank of Canada on Wednesday trimmed its key policy rate by 25 basis points to 3%, cut growth forecasts and warned Canadians that a tariff war triggered by the United States could cause major...