On 6 March, the European Central Bank (ECB) shaved a quarter point off its key interest rate, dropping it to 2.5 percent.
Tag: inflation
IN JANUARY, U.S. TRADE DEFICIT SET ANOTHER RECORD
January’s trade deficit soared 34 percent from December as American businesses stockpiled goods from other countries ahead of Donald Trump’s promised wave of stiff tariffs on all goods coming into the U.S.
INFLATION EASES IN JANUARY AS CONSUMERS CUT BACK SPENDING
The U.S. annual inflation in January ran at 2.5 percent, a slight slowdown from December’s 2.6 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. The month-to-month rate was up 0.3 percent, the same as it was in December.
CONSUMER SENTIMENT TANKS IN NEW SURVEY
Consumers have taken an increasingly dark view of the U.S. economy and its future, the newest monthly University of Michigan survey of consumer sentiment has found.
DELINQUENT LOANS ON THE RISE AMONG U.S. BUSINESSES
The share of U.S. business loans falling behind in their payments is the highest since 2017 and could rise even higher as the impact of Donald Trump’s trade war begins to bite, the Financial Times reported.
EQUITY INVESTORS ARE TURNING BEARISH
In the week ending 12 February, 47.3 percent of individuals invested in the U.S. stock market expect share prices to fall during the next six months, the most since November 2023, a survey by the American Association of Individual Investors found.
RUSSIA’S CENTRAL BANK HOLDS INTEREST RATE AT 21 PERCENT
The Bank of Russia kept its interest rate at a record 21 percent for a second consecutive meeting as inflation in January was estimated at 9.9 percent, up from 9.5 percent in December and more than twice the bank’s target rate.
CORPORATIONS SEE LOWER PROFITS AHEAD
After an upbeat earnings season, corporations foresee a less sunny future.
U.S. CREDIT CARD DEBT TOPS $1 TRILLION
Americans now have a record $1.21-trillion balance on their credit cards, according to the new quarterly report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
PRODUCER PRICES ROSE IN JANUARY, SIGNALING HIGHER RETAIL PRICES AHEAD
Producer prices—the wholesale prices factories and service companies charge for their wares—rose 0.4 percent in January from December, compared to the 0.3 percent forecast economists had made in a Dow Jones poll.