Latest U.S. inflation numbers are in markets’ sight, especially since Federal Reserve policymakers have come out in force to correct any misconception about their determination to slay decades-high inflation with big rate hikes.
The benchmark index is up 14 per cent from its mid-June low, supported in part by expectations that the Federal Reserve will be less hawkish than previously anticipated. Analysts polled by Reuters forecast annual inflation at 8.9 per cent in July versus 9.1 per cent in June, which was the largest increase since 1981.U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, means U.S.-China tensions are rising again.
Scalded by Russia, investment funds have already started to tread carefully in China. No doubt, investors will remain alert to further signs of trouble in the East.Cash is cheap in China, because of an abundance of it sloshing around amid government measures to support an economy scarred by zero-COVID policies.
Thankfully, consumer price inflation has been manageable at 2.5 per cent, well below the official 3 per cent target, even if it is at nearly two-year highs. The latest reading is also due Wednesday. A darkening economy is impinging increasingly on Britain’s leadership race, casting doubt on the merits of the feel-good tax-cutting pitch offered by front-runner Liz Truss, and calls for fiscal discipline from opponent Rishi Sunak.
Recession