How will the Bank tackle a crisis with lower “new normal” interest rates? March 13, 2014 Three monetary Policy Committee members, including governor Mark Carney, have voiced the view in recent weeks that rates may only rise to somewhere between two and three per cent, even after years of relatively solid recovery. The rough level was suggested in the February inflation report, and ever-proactive TUC senior economist Duncan Weldon blogged on [...]
Why the Bank of England must stop deleting its historical records March 11, 2014 THE DESTRUCTION of historical records by government bodies is a recurring motif of the unfree society. So the Bank of England’s hesitancy to publish transcripts from its meetings should be a serious cause for concern. Worse still, recordings of the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) meetings are not even preserved. They are routinely deleted – the [...]
Why the Bank of England must stop deleting its historical records March 11, 2014 THE DESTRUCTION of historical records by government bodies is a recurring motif of the unfree society. So the Bank of England’s hesitancy to publish transcripts from its meetings should be a serious cause for concern. Worse still, recordings of the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) meetings are not even preserved. They are routinely deleted – the [...]
Why the Bank of England needs to stop deleting historical records March 11, 2014 A policy of deleting historical records at the Bank of England has come under fire, as individuals voice concerns about the implication for transparency. The tapes of policy setting meetings are routinely deleted – the transcripts destroyed once minutes are agreed upon. Today, Treasury Select Committee chairman Andrew Tyrie has asked for the Bank of [...]
What you need to know before the US open March 7, 2014 Nonfarm payrolls just came in stronger than expected. In February, 175,000 workers were hired. Analysts had expected 149,000 jobs to be added. Some traders have begun pricing in an earlier date for a rate hike from the Fed on the back of the solid numbers. The dollar has hit a six-week high against the yen [...]
This week’s 4 must-see charts March 7, 2014 The Fed’s use of the word “weather”, vulnerable high street profits, gold’s revival, and the economic effects of the Ukraine crisis. We bring you some of our favourite analysts’ picks of the most important graphs this week. David Lebovitz, global market strategist at JP Morgan Asset Management: There has been a lot of discussion of [...]
What you need to know before the open March 7, 2014 A mixed open for Europe this morning as investors await the US employment report. Consensus is that US hiring increased enough in February to leave the Fed’s tapering plan on track. The S&P 500 saw a record finish again yesterday as weekly jobless claims dropped to a three-month low. The ECB disappointed yesterday, leaving its [...]
European Central Bank holds rates March 6, 2014 Today's second central bank decision and the European Central Bank has opted to leave its key interest rate unchanged, at 0.25 per cent. All other rates have been held, too. Capital Economics has called the outcome a "disappointment". Like numerous others, the research group was hoping Mario Draghi's dovish comments would lead to some action, [...]
Why the ECB’s rate decision has one analyst singing Simon and Garfunkel March 6, 2014 We’ve got the European Central Bank’s interest rate decision being announced at 12.45, and for Kit Juckes of Societe Generale, Simon and Garfunkel’s 1968 song The Boxer gives a neat summation of what we will – or won’t – hear this afternoon. I can only apologise for the Paul Simon thing this morning, which is [...]
3 things Putin probably hadn’t bargained for March 4, 2014 It seems Vladimir Putin, upon whom everyone’s been keeping more than half an eye, is backing off. Following the beating the Russian stock market and currency took yesterday, the Russian leader's been speaking at a news conference. He told reporters this morning that there’s no – current – need for military force in Ukraine, that [...]