Central Bank Watch
Bank of England Leaves Policy Settings as Is But Paints a Difficult Future
August 3, 2017
The Bank of England held a meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee and released a quarterly Inflation Outlook. Officials… Kept the Bank Rate at 0.25%, its level since a 25-basis point cut a half year ago. Didn’t change the GBP 435 billion ceiling on gilt purchases. Such was raised by GBP 60 billion last February. […] More
Central Bank Watch
Czech National Bank
August 3, 2017
Although anticipated by market participants, the Czech National Bank raised interest rates today for the first time since February 2008. Monetary officials four months ago had stopped using automatic intervention to prevent the koruna from appreciating beyond 26.0 per euro. Intervention still occurs but not in a prescribed automatic and unlimited way. The Bank’s two […] More
Central Bank Watch
National Bank of Ukraine
August 3, 2017
From 30% two years ago, Ukraine’s key interest rate was reduced in a series of cuts by more than half to 14% in October 2016. It stayed at that level for a half year but was reduced 100 basis points this past April and a further 50 bps in May. The latest policy review, like […] More
Central Bank Watch
Central Bank of Sri Lanka
August 3, 2017
From October 2012 to April 2015, Sri Lanka’s central bank key lending and deposit rates had been cut in four moves by two percentage points. Half of that reduction was subsequently reversed in two 50-basis point hikes administered in February and July of last year. Since July 2017, the standing deposit facility rate has stayed […] More
Deeper Analysis
PMIs: Euroland Did Better than the United States Last Month
August 3, 2017
The U.S. non-manufacturing purchasing managers index slumped 3.5 points to an 11-month low of 53.9 in July, depressed by declines of 5.4 points in new business, 4.9 points in business activity, and 2.2 points in employment. Euroland’s services PMI, by contrast, stayed unchanged with a reading of 55.4 in July, causing the differential between the […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Stocks Up in Europe after Drop in Asia… Dollar and Sterling Off, Too
August 3, 2017
The dollar fell 0.5% against the yen, 0.2% relative to the euro and Swiss franc and 0.1% versus the kiwi and yuan. Sterling’s even more weak, dropping 0.6% against the dollar as Bank of England Governor Carney returned to a theme that Brexit will hit the economy for a long time to come. Share prices […] More
