LONDON: World stocks were stuck in their worst run of the year and bonds were on the rise on Thursday, as investors waited for confirmation that the European Central Bank will start shoveling cheap cash at the euro zone again.
A return to what was once its flagship crisis-fighting tool would be a wrenching change of direction for the ECB just months after it wound down its 2.6 trillion euro QE program, "For some time, markets had been pricing in good news, namely that the talks between the U.S. and China will likely go well," said Tatsushi Maeno, senior strategist at Okasan Asset Management."Now markets are having a pause."
The ADP National Employment Report showed private payrolls increased by 183,000 in February after surging 300,000 in January. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast private payrolls advancing 189,000 in February. The Canadian and Australian dollar sank to two-month lows on Wednesday as traders scaled back holdings on expectations policy-makers would leave interest rates alone in the foreseeable future or even lower them to counter their softening economies.
Diplomats said talks in Brussels on Tuesday led by British Prime Minister Theresa May's chief lawyer, Geoffrey Cox, failed to find common ground, with three weeks to go before Britain's scheduled departure on March 29.
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