French nationwide strike to extend as pension reform fight intensifies
Protests against plans to raise pension age to 64Majority of voters reject reformGovernment, unions determined to stand their groundPARIS, March 7 (Reuters) – France’s nationwide strike against a planned pension reform, which disrupted train services, shut schools and halted fuel deliveries, will spill into Wednesday as unions seek to force a government retreat on the […]
Fed’s Daly: tighter policy, for a longer time, ‘likely’ needed
March 4 (Reuters) – San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly on Saturday sounded a clear warning on the inflationary threat, and signaled that the U.S. central bank may raise interest rates further, and keep them there longer, than has been expected.Though inflation by the Fed’s preferred measure has fallen from its mid-2022 highs […]
Fed “acutely aware” of trouble inflation is causing – report
WASHINGTON, March 3 (Reuters) – The U.S. Federal Reserve is “acutely aware” of the challenges high inflation poses to the economy and is “strongly committed” to its 2% target for price increases, the central bank said on Friday in its latest semiannual report to Congress on monetary policy and the economy.While largely a backward-looking summary […]
BIS urges central banks to ‘get the job done’
LONDON, Feb 27 (Reuters) – Central banks need to “get the job done” when it comes to getting inflation back under control, the Bank for International Settlements has said, urging them to avoid the mistakes of the 1970’s by declaring victory too early.The BIS, dubbed the bank for central banks, said it was vital authorities […]
Wells Fargo lays off mortgage bankers – CNBC
Feb 22 (Reuters) – Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N) laid off hundreds of mortgage bankers this week as part of its recent strategic shift, CNBC reported on Wednesday, citing people with knowledge of the matter.The layoffs affected top producers, including bankers who exceeded $100 million in loan volumes last year and some who attended an […]
Analysis: Fed’s quandary: Can the economy keep motoring and inflation fall?
WASHINGTON, Feb 21 (Reuters) – A year into the U.S. Federal Reserve’s most aggressive monetary crackdown since the 1980s the strength of the U.S. economy has befuddled policymakers now faced with an unexpected dilemma: Are things too good?There’s little sign the U.S. job market, currently sporting a more-than-half-century low 3.4% unemployment rate, is weakening. Consumers […]
Global shares sink, dollar soars on rate-hike outlook
LONDON, Feb 17 (Reuters) – Stock markets dropped across the globe on Friday and the dollar leapt to six-week highs as jobs data revived expectations the U.S. central bank would stick to its monetary tightening path.Data from the U.S. Labor Department overnight showed monthly producer prices had accelerated in January and the number of Americans […]
At least two more Fed rate hikes and no cut this year, say economists: Reuters poll
BENGALURU, Feb 14 (Reuters) – The U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at least twice more in coming months, with the risk they go higher still, according to a majority of economists in a Reuters poll who see no cut by year-end.This brings the majority of private-sector forecasters in line with the central bank’s […]
U.S. posts $39 billion January deficit after pension fund bailout
WASHINGTON, Feb 10 (Reuters) – The U.S. government posted a $39 billion budget deficit for January after a $119 billion monthly surplus a year earlier, as revenues dipped and one-time costs, including the bailout of a union pension fund, pushed outlays sharply higher, the Treasury Department said on Friday.The report, which comes as Treasury employs […]
In State of the Union speech, Biden challenges Republicans on debt and economy
WASHINGTON, Feb 7 (Reuters) – President Joe Biden challenged Republicans to lift the U.S. debt ceiling and support tax policies that were friendlier to middle class Americans on Tuesday in a State of the Union speech that served as a blueprint for his 2024 re-election campaign.Assailing oil companies for making high profits and corporate America […]