Market Pulse - Currencies
Asia Pacific heading towards uneven recovery amid lurking risks, World Bank says
One year on from the start of the pandemic, the Asia Pacific region's economy is still facing multiple risks, not least from an uneven recovery among countries and the possibility that new virus strains might appear, the World Bank said.
'Bring it on', ECB's Lagarde tells skeptics
European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde fired a shot across the bow of financial markets participants who might be tempted to second guess the institution's commitment to keeping monetary policy easy.
JP Morgan expects shares will gain alongside bond yields, at least for now
Strategists at JP Morgan reiterated their positive stance on equities, notwithstanding the fact that government bond yields were very likely still headed higher.
US consumer confidence edges past forecasts in March, University of Michigan says
Consumer spirits in America were buoyed in March by government stimulus checks arriving in their mailboxes and as the country's vaccination programme rolled on.
US personal consumption misses forecasts in February, but incomes stronger
Personal spending in the US undershot analysts' forecasts last month, but revised figures showed that incomes had grown significantly more quickly than expected.
Legal and General 'unlikely to participate' in Deliveroo IPO
Legal&General may become the latest UK investment outfit to shun Deliveroo's upcoming flotation on the London Stock Exchange.
UK CPI inflation going nowhere, some economists say
Inflation at the consumer level in the UK is headed nowhere very quickly, economists said.
US jobless claims hit post-pandemic low
The number of Americans filing for unemployment claims for the first time dropped quite sharply during the preceding week hitting their lowest level since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Thursday preview: EU summit, US jobless data in focus
All eyes will be on Brussels on Thursday as the European Union heads of state are due to meet to analyse proposed curbs on the bloc's Covid-19 vaccine exports, among other matters.
Downside surprise in US durable goods orders for February, on account of snowstorms
Orders in the US for goods made to last more than three years fell unexpectedly last month, but only on account of the snowstorms that blanketed much of the country.
US new home sales drop sharply in February
New home sales undershot economists' forecasts by an enormous margin last month.
Global stock markets nowhere near a 'bubble', Goldman Sachs says
Many of the 'tell tale' signs of a dangerous financial bubble are absent from global stock markets, despite the fact that they are hovering near record highs, strategists at Goldman Sachs argued.
Initial US jobless claims jump unexpectedly during latest week
Initial US jobless claims jumped unexpectedly during the previous week while secondary claims, which track hiring conditions, were roughly flat.
Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's factory sector index jumps in March
A closely-followed survey of manufacturing sector conditions in the US mid-Atlantic region surprised sharply to the upside.
Bank of England says it's nowhere near starting to raise interest rates
The Bank of England's stewards voted unanimously on Wednesday to keep policy unchanged, arguing that it was nowhere near close to starting to raise short-term interest rates.
Fed still sees 'considerable risks' from Covid-19 pandemic
America's central bank stayed put on policy, reiterating its commitment to maintain short-term interest rates low until the economy was firmly on the recovery path.
Third wave risk leads German economic advisers to trim 2021 GDP forecast
Germany's economy is set to rebound strongly over the next two years, but a bit less quickly than previously anticipated, due to the risk of a third wave of Covid-19, advisors to the German government said.
American consumer confidence jumps in early March, University of Michigan says
US consumer sentiment improved by more than expected at the start of the month, led by improved expectations, the results of a very closely-followed survey revealed.
Number of job openings in US rose slightly in January, survey finds
Trends in the US jobs market were mixed at the start of 2021, with job-seekers apparently displaying a bit more caution, even as the companies advertised more new jobs, the results of a survey revealed.
Weekly US jobless claims continue falling at steady pace
Unemployment claims in the US continued falling at a steady pace over the latest week.