The central banks of South Africa and the United States are expected to hike key interest rates this week following on from the European Central Bank’s recent decision to hike its interest rate by 75 basis points.
SA Reserve Bank to hike rates again this week to contain inflation, support rand – Daily Maverick
It’s a given that the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) will hike interest rates again this week in an effort to tame runaway inflation.
The only question that remains is how much the SARB will increase the rate when it concludes its Monetary Policy committee meeting on Thursday.
Daily Maverick reports that a poll conducted by finder.com of 18 economists showed that half of them expected a 50-bps hike, 44% a 75-bps hike while only one economist expected just a 25-bps hike.
All eyes on another sizable rate hike from the Fed: What to know this week – Yahoo Finance
Similarly, the US Federal Reserve will begin its two-day meeting on Tuesday with expectations the Fed will hold firm in its hawkish attitude and deliver a third straight 75 bps increase to the benchmark policy rate.
Bitcoin, Ether Extend Crypto Selloff as Big Fed Rate Hike Looms – Bloomberg
Meanwhile, Bloomberg reports cryptocurrencies extended a slide on Monday morning with Ether falling 5.6% to a two-month low while the largest crypto Bitcoin dropped about 5% ahead of the expected interest rate hikes.
