Janet Yellen says soft landing looks good, unemployment may level off

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said she sees a good chance of the US economy achieving a soft landing, with the unemployment rate — which has ticked up in recent months — averting a sharp increase. “Signs are very good that we’ll achieve a soft landing, with unemployment stabilizing more or less where it is, or … Read more

Fed minutes show unity on cautious approach to future rate hikes

Federal Reserve policymakers at their most recent meeting united around a strategy to “proceed carefully” on future interest-rate moves and base any further tightening on progress toward their inflation goal. “All participants agreed that the committee was in a position to proceed carefully and that policy decisions at every meeting would continue to be based … Read more

Retail inflation slows to 6.83% as vegetable prices decline

Retail inflation moderated to 6.83% in August from a 15-month high of 7.44% in July due to easing vegetable prices, offering a measure of relief to the Indian central bank and bond investors. Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation, however, continued to exceed the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) target range of 2-6%. A Mint poll … Read more

Fed is done raising interest rates, economists say

The chief economists at the American Bankers Association are of the opinion that the US Federal Reserve is done with raising interest rates and will likely to cut them by roughly one percentage point next year, reported the Bloomberg. The latest forecast from the Economic Advisory Committee of the American Bankers Association shows that the … Read more

RBI committed to bring down inflation to 4%; watchful of price risks: Governor Das

Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das on Tuesday said the central bank has a commitment to reducing inflation to a target of 4 per cent. Additionally, it will maintain a vigilant stance in monitoring potential risks, particularly as frequent global supply disruptions can significantly impact price management. Shaktikanta Das while delivering a lecture at the Delhi … Read more

Japan at ‘inflection point’ in 25-year battle with deflation: Govt

Japan may be at an inflection point in its 25-year battle with deflation as price and wage rises show signs of broadening, the government said on Tuesday, signalling its conviction the economy was nearing an end to prolonged stagnation. The optimistic view echoes that of the Bank of Japan (BOJ), which has said corporate price- … Read more

RBI monetary policy: The liquidity lever may prove to be better price tamer

Monetary policy — and interest rates — are near-synonymous. But going by the central bank’s surprise choice of price-taming instrument Thursday, they need not be so in the next few quarters. Whenever monetary authorities wanted to influence price levels for goods and services, they resorted to the popular tool — interest rates that make money … Read more

The Fed Will Cut Rates in the Fall As Credit Faces ‘Tight Vise’

The Fed will finally cut interest rates in the fall, former PIMCO economist Paul McCulley predicted. That’s because banking turmoil will put credit in a “tight vise,” slowing the economy, he warned. Economists have flagged the risk of recession over the past year as the Fed aggressively hiked rates. Despite what Jerome Powell and the … Read more