High interest rates have begun their initial descent.The Federal Reserve on Wednesday announced it would cut its key overnight lending rate by half a percentage point — aka 50 basis points — marking the first time the US central bank has lowered rates since March 2020.It is expected to continue cutting rates over the next year or two. But Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday the board will “make decisions meeting by meeting based on incoming economic data.” Barring a big economic slowdown, however, further cuts may be smaller (e.g.., a quarter point). Of today’s cut, Powell said, “We…
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More deals under 4% are coming on to the market, ahead the Bank of England’s (BoE) interest rate decision, with another mortgage war looming that is set to benefit those trying to get on the property ladder.The average rate on a two-year fixed deal this week stood at 5.74%, while average rates for a five-year deal came in at 5.24%, according to figures from Uswitch.The Bank of England cut interest rates to 5% at its August Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting — the first reduction of the UK’s base rate in four years. It is set to keep interest rates…
Asian markets forged higher on Thursday after the Federal Reserve kicked off its efforts to prevent a recession in the… Asian markets forged higher on Thursday after the Federal Reserve kicked off its efforts to prevent a recession in the U.S. with a bigger-than-usual cut to interest rates. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index jumped 2.5% to 37,284.43. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1% to 17,840.93. The Shanghai Composite index climbed 0.8% to 2,738.19, while Taiwan’s Taiex was up 1%. South Korea’s index was an outlier, losing 0.3% to 2,566.65. The Bank of Japan and the Bank of England are…
The Bank of England is set to hold its interest rate at 5.0% on Thursday. United Kingdom’s annual inflation was stable at 2.2% in August. BoE policy announcements are likely to rock the Pound Sterling. After a close call in August, the Bank of England’s (BoE) September interest rate decision is keenly awaited for fresh cues on the bank’s future policy action and the pace of its bond sales. Thursday’s meeting is not a “Super Thursday” – there won’t be any Monetary Policy Report (MPR) or a press conference from Governor Andrew Bailey –, but the United Kingdom (UK) central…
GBP/USD registers gains of over 0.80% following Fed’s cut. The Fed delivers a 50 bps rate cut as it grows confident that inflation will reach its 2% target. The Fed’s dot-plot projects the fed funds rate to end 2024 at approximately 4.4%. The GBP/USD hit a new yearly high of 1.3286 during the North American session after the Fed surprised the markets with a 50 bps rate cut. At the time of writing, the pair trades volatile within the 1.3200-1.3300 range as traders await Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s press conference. Fed cuts rates by 50 bps, not unanimously, as Bowman…
Image source: Getty Images I first purchased FTSE 250 investment manager abrdn (LSE: ABDN) shortly after it was demoted from the FTSE 100 last year. I did so for two key reasons that I think are still in play. The first is the huge yield on the stock, which is one of the highest in any major FTSE index. The second is what i see as the overdone fall in the share price. Are the shares undervalued? A wave of selling follows the demotion of a stock from the FTSE 100, regardless of any fundamental quality in the shares. This…
Investing.com– Gold prices moved in a flat-to-low range in Asian trade on Thursday, and were nursing overnight losses after less dovish signals from the Federal Reserve offset some optimism over a bumper rate cut. Strength in the pressured bullion prices, as the greenback rose sharply on bets that U.S. interest rates may not fall as much as expected in the medium to long term. The yellow metal also saw some profit-taking after hitting record highs in the run-up to Wednesday’s Fed decision. rose 0.1% to $2,561.30 an ounce, while expiring in December fell 0.5% to $2,585.65 an ounce by 00:24…
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank believed the economy was in good shape and unemployment was still relatively low.Jose Luis Magana/APThe Fed just issued its first interest-rate cut in four years.Stocks immediately surged to record highs after the announcement before closing lower.Major indexes stayed resilient near all-time highs despite a jumbo cut already being priced in.Stocks got a brief leg up to an intraday record on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve issued its first rate cut since 2020.Major indexes then wobbled into the close, turning lower during Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s question-and-answer session. But their resilience within…
Stock chart showing rise after extended declinegetty Yes, Trump Media stock has serious negatives. The top issue is the expected selloff when the “great unlocking” (of currently unsalable shares) occurs this Friday (Sept. 20). Adding in the weak fundamentals and the stock price deterioration produces the popular view that DJT is a stock to avoid. When weak, beat-up stocks take on a widely held negative view, the price naturally is down. While the price drop then is viewed as proof of a problem stock, its continued decline can also produce a contrarian investment opportunity. Trump Media stock could be a…
Data from Kenya’s central bank show that public debt (total money owed) declined between December 2023 and June 2024. The drop in external debt – by 15.4 % – over this period does not mean that the country’s overall finances have improved. Rather, it is due to the gains in the value of the Kenyan shilling, thanks to pervasive state interventions since February 2024. So high is Kenya’s public debt that servicing it ate up 69.6% of domestic revenues as of June 2024. This is more than double the recommended limit of 30%, making the country’s public debt…