LONDON - World stock markets and the dollar rose on Friday as investors looked to a speech by Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell for clarification on whether the U.S. central bank remains on course to deliver another interest rate cut in next month.
MSCI’s All Country World Index, which tracks shares across 47 countries, was up 0.1% and set to break a three-week losing streak. Kansas City Fed President Esther George, who dissented against the decision to ease in July - for the first time since the financial crisis - and Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker, who said he “reluctantly” supported the cut, both said the U.S. economy did not need more stimulus at this point.
“Judging by the minutes from the July meeting the central bank seems content to sit on their hands, but it is worth remembering the U.S.-China trade situation has intensified, and so has the unrest in Hong Kong, and that might prompt Mr. Powell to be a touch more dovish than he was in late July,” said David Madden, markets analyst at CMC Markets in London.In the U.S.
The pound fell half a percent to $1.2195, reversing most of the gains made on Thursday after traders interpreted encouraging comments on Brexit from German Chancellor Angela Merkel to mean a solution to the Irish border problem could be found before Britain leaves the EU on Oct. 31. [GBP/]Spot yuan slid to as low as 7.0992 per dollar, its weakest since March 2008. China’s central bank set the midpoint rate at 7.0572, its weakest level in 11-1/2 years but much stronger than traders had expected.
Ugh. Hocus pocus.
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