February 2023 in Figures
February 28, 2023
The dollar appreciated significantly and broadly during February as risk aversion returned. The tone of remarks by Federal Reserve officials became more hawkish, and U.S. price and activity data suggested that U.S. monetary policy is not yet out in front of the problem and will need to be tightened more than previous forward guidance had suggested.
Central bank interest rates in February were raised by 50 basis points in Euroland, Great Britain, Sweden, Mexico, the Philippines, New Zealand, Israel, and Iceland. Rate hikes of 25 basis points were implemented by the Federal Reserve and central banks in Serbia, Australia, India, and Zambia. The Bank of Japan did not change policy, surprising investors who had expected another rise in the bank’s daily yield control cap. Also the Central Bank of Turkey cut its interest rate benchmark by 50 basis points.
Ten-year sovereign debt yields rose significantly during the month and in a number of cases more than reversed big drops that had occurred during January. U.S., Canadian and Swiss equities performed poorly, while stock markets managed to rise on balance in Germany, Japan and Great Britain.
The price of a Bitcoin token rose 1% despite a 1.5% drop on the final day of the month. Oil and gold prices dropped during February, the former as persistent inflation revived recession worries and the latter because gold tends to trade inversely with interest rates and the dollar.
| 10-Yr Yield | 02/28/23 | 01/31/23 | Change in Feb |
| U.S. | 3.91% | 3.51% | +40 Basis Pts |
| Germany | 2.64% | 2.28% | +36 |
| Japan | 0.49% | 0.48% | +1 |
| U.K. | 3.82% | 3.33% | +49 |
| Canada | 3.33% | 2.92% | +41 |
| Switzerland | 1.40% | 1.21% | +19 |
| CB Policy Rate | 02/28/23 | 01/31/23 | Change in Feb |
| Fed funds target | 4.50/4.75% | 4.25/4.50% | +25 basis points |
| ECB refi rate | 2.50% | 3.00% | +50 |
| BOJ policy rate | -0.10% | -0.10 | 0 |
| BOE Bank Rate | 3.50% | 4.00% | +50 |
| Swiss Policy Rate | 1.00% | 1.00% | 0 |
| FX | 02/28/23 | 01/31/23 | Chg in Dollar |
| EUR/USD | 1.0576 | 1.0867 | +2.8% |
| USD/JPY | 136.16 | 130.15 | +4.6% |
| USD/CHF | 0.9422 | 0.9156 | +2.9% |
| GBP/USD | 1.2026 | 1.2325 | +2.5% |
| AUD/USD | 0.6727 | 0.7057 | +4.9% |
| NZD/USD | 0.6184 | 0.6465 | +4.5% |
| USD/CAD | 1.3645 | 1.3304 | +2.6% |
| USD/CNY | 6.9334 | 6.7547 | +2.6% |
| Equities | 02/28/23 | 01/31/23 | Change in Feb |
| S&P 500 | 3976 | 4077 | -2.5% |
| Nasdaq | 11456 | 11585 | -1.1% |
| Djia | 32655 | 34086 | -4.2% |
| Dax | 15365 | 15128 | +1.6% |
| Nikkei | 27446 | 27327 | +0.4% |
| Ftse | 7876 | 7772 | +1.3% |
| Canada TSE | 20225 | 20772 | -2.6% |
| Swiss SMI | 11098 | 11286 | -1.7% |
| Commodities | 02/28/23 | 01/31/23 | Change in Feb |
| Oil, $ per barrel | 77.05 | 78.87 | -2.3% |
| Gold, $ per ounce
Bitcoin, $ |
1836.70
23173 |
1945.30
22953 |
-5.6%
+1.0% |
Copyright Larry Greenberg 2023. All rights reserved. No secondary distribution without express permission.
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