RBA: hawk eye!

From

As was largely expected, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Board decided to leave the policy rate unchanged at 4.35 per cent. However, I would be surprised if the option

continue reading

The Fed less hawkish than feared and upcoming US April non-farm payrolls

From

As was universally expected the Federal Reserve (Fed) left the policy rate target unchanged at 5.25-5.5 per cent. In so doing the Fed acknowledged that inflation had been a little

continue reading

Groundhog day as core inflation in the US surprises on the upside again

From

US CPI: Groundhog day as core inflation surprises on the upside again At the start of the year the bond market was anticipating something close to 175 basis points (bps)

continue reading

The Fed and March US non-farm payrolls report and the ECB’s end to the tightening cycle

From

  “Give me a one-handed economist. All my economists say “on the one hand…, but then on the other…”   Harry Truman (US President 1945-53) Where is the Fed coming into

continue reading

On the other hand

From

“Give me a one-handed Economist. All my economists say ‘on the one hand…’, then ‘but on the other…” – Harry Truman (US President 1945-52) Despite a plethora of central bank

continue reading

RBA: the narrow path resembles a tightrope; a “verbal pivot” in the offing? The Fed: Déjà vu all over again?!

From

The Fed: Déjà vu all over again?! Yogi Berra was a US baseball coach renowned for his mangling of expression. He is most famous for coining the phrase “déjà vu

continue reading

Central Banks: Are we there yet?

From

The week just passed was meant to be one where markets obtained a clearer insight into when central banks, including the Federal Reserve (the Fed), the European Central Bank (ECB)

continue reading

Soft landing still a central case…but a lot can go wrong. (Or will the Bears catch “goldilocks”?)

From

RBA: monetary policy bias swinging to neutral, but still some distance to any imperative for a policy rate cut Yesterday’s release of the January Monthly consumer price index (CPI) indicator

continue reading

US January consumer price index. Not there yet. Not even close?

From

January’s US consumer price index (CPI) is a reminder that the challenges around the “last mile” in returning inflation to target are daunting. I suspect that the Federal Reserve (Fed)

continue reading

Phlegmatic Fed

From

As was widely anticipated, the US Federal Reserve’s (Fed) Federal Open Markets Committee (FOMC) opted to eschew any adjustment in the policy rate at the conclusion of its meeting on

continue reading