Reserve Bank of India
Reserve Bank of Interest Rate Not Raised This Time But More Increases Deemed Possible
April 6, 2023
There was a central bank interest rate surprise today. The policy rate had previously been raised since May 2022 by a total of 250 basis points from a record low of 4.0% to 6.5%. That tightening had been engineered in six consecutive incremental hikes, including one of 25 basis points at the prior review in […] More
Muted Financial Market Activity Ahead of Good Friday/Easter Holiday
April 6, 2023
Aside from 0.5-0.7% gains against the Australian and New Zealand currencies, overnight dollar movement has been scant, with 0.1% dips against the yuan, euro and sterling and 0.1% upticks relative to the yen and loonie. U.S. stock futures are similarly very close to Wednesday closing levels. So are the prices of gold and oil. In […] More
Reserve Bank of India Tightens Again
February 8, 2023
At the Reserve Bank of India, the repo rate has been increased by 25 basis points to 6.5%. Prior to the pandemic’s onset, the rate had been 5.15% at the end of 2019 but was cut to 4.0% by May 2020 where it stood for two years until the current tightening cycle began in May […] More
Digesting the Powell and Biden Speeches and Other Central Bank Decisions
February 8, 2023
Fed Chairman Powell yesterday reaffirmed the assertion that inflation has begun to decline but balanced that success with views that the peak in interest rates may be higher than indicated earlier and that the job of restoring in-target inflation will take quite some time longer. With a refrain of let’s-finish-the-job, U.S. President Biden sounded like […] More
Central Bank Rate Hikes in India and Canada
December 7, 2022
The Reserve Bank of India‘s repo rate was increased 35 basis points to 6.25%. That was the fifth hike this year from a starting level of 4.0% that had prevailed since May 2020. Indian CPI inflation, although down to 6.8% in October from 7.4% in September, remains well above target. The 6.25% new interest rate […] More
Indian Monetary Policy Tightened As Well
September 30, 2022
Excessive inflation also concerns officials at the Reserve Bank of India, who raised the repo rate by an expected half percentage point to 5.90% at this weeks policy review. Three previous hikes in May, June and August had totaled 140 basis points, more than reversing 115 basis points of ease enacted in the first half […] More
Third Quarter Ushered Out With Disturbing Inflation Data, More Central Bank Hikes,High Tension in Asia, a Mega-Storm in the U.S. Southeast, and a Strong Dollar
September 30, 2022
The weighted DXY dollar index rose 0.2% overnight but is 2% below Wednesday’s peak. The dollar advanced so far today by 0.4% against the euro, Swiss franc, Australian dollar and sterling but just 0.1% versus the yen. Thursday had seen heavy selling of equities. Share prices today closed down 1.8% in Japan, 1.2% in Australia, […] More
Reserve Bank of India Raises Interest Rate
August 5, 2022
The Reserve Bank of India engineered a third hike of its policy interest rate, lifting such by 50 basis points to 5.40%. This matched June’s incremental rise, which had followed an initial 40-basis point increase in May. The rate is now at its highest level since September 2019. A released statement explained today’s move: With […] More
Investors Treading Water Ahead of U.S. Monthly Release of Jobs Data
August 5, 2022
Market movements: U.S. stock futures and the dollar are barely changed. Likewise, the prices of gold and West Texas Intermediate crude oil have dipped just 0.2% and 0.3%, although the latter has now retreated roughly 29% from its 52-week high set in early March. Bitcoin rallied 3.4%. The Reserve Bank of India engineered a third […] More
More Bad Inflation News and a Diversity of Central Bank Decisions
April 8, 2022
The dollar continued to trade at historically firm levels overnight. The weighted DXY dollar index is up 0.1% and touched another multiyear high of 99.99. Gains of 0.5%, 0.3% and 0.2% were made against the New Zealand, Australian and British currencies, but the greenback dipped 0.2% versus the Russian ruble. Asian stock markets made modest […] More
