Reuters US Economy

By Herbert Lash and Shreyashi Sanyal (Reuters) – U.S. stocks closed down on Wednesday as a deal to raise the federal debt ceiling headed for a crucial vote in Congress, while unexpectedly strong labor market data rattled investors who fear the Federal Reserve might hike interest rates again in June. The House of Representatives is …

Wall St falls as labor data spurs rate hike jitters before debt ceiling vote Read More »

By Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. rate futures on Wednesday priced in a pause in interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve at next month’s monetary policy meeting, a massive turnaround from indications of a 25 basis-point increase earlier in the session, according to Refinitiv’s FedWatch. The big catalyst were comments from Fed …

US rate futures expect Fed pause in June in sharp turnaround from earlier Read More »

By Howard Schneider and Ann Saphir WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Federal Reserve officials including the vice chair-designate pointed towards a rate hike “skip” in June, prompting a quick reversal of market expectations for another hike as the U.S. central bank weighed the value of caution against still strong inflation data. In what some viewed as a message …

A June skip jumps to the fore following latest Fed comments Read More »

By Davide Barbuscia and Tom Sims NEW YORK (Reuters) – BlackRock Inc Chief Executive Laurence Fink said on Wednesday that inflation remained sticky and the Federal Reserve may need to hike interest rates further to contain price pressures. Fink, who heads the world’s largest asset manager, said at a Deutsche Bank financial services conference that …

BlackRock’s CEO expects more rate hikes as inflation persists Read More »

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentina’s central bank purchased $451 million of foreign currency on Wednesday to bolster its dwindling hard currency reserves, after daily sales from farm exports topped $1 billion, providing some relief for the country’s hard-hit finances. The currency move on Wednesday marks the biggest such purchase since late December. In May, the …

Argentine central bank logs biggest U.S. dollar purchase in five months Read More »

By Ann Saphir and Howard Schneider (Reuters) – U.S. economic activity appeared to stall in recent weeks, a Federal Reserve report published on Wednesday showed, with job growth and inflation both slowing, and near-term business prospects looking slightly worse than previously. “Expectations for future growth deteriorated a little, though contacts still largely expected a further …

U.S. economy little changed, outlook ‘deteriorated’: Fed survey Read More »

BERLIN (Reuters) -German unemployment rose less than expected in May, showing a resilience of the labour market despite difficult economic conditions, labour office figures showed on Wednesday. The Federal Labour Office said the number of people out of work increased by 9,000 in seasonally adjusted terms to 2.573 million. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected …

German unemployment rises less than expected in May Read More »

PARIS (Reuters) – French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Wednesday he was sticking to a forecast of 1% economic growth this year despite numerous risks to the outlook while a fall in inflation this month offered consumers some relief. The European Commission and the International Monetary Fund are more cautious about the outlook, …

French finance minister sticks to 1% growth outlook despite risks Read More »

PARIS (Reuters) – French inflation cooled more than expected in May to its lowest level in a year as energy and food price increases moderated, according to preliminary official data on Wednesday. Consumer prices dipped 0.1% over one month, giving an annual inflation rate of 6.0% after 6.9% in April, EU-harmonised data from the INSEE …

French inflation eases in May to 12-month low of 6.0% Read More »

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S Commerce Department is closely scrutinizing requests to send items to China and last year denied or took no action on 26%, a senior official said in written Senate testimony released on Tuesday. Commerce Department official Thea Rozman Kendler said in written testimony for a Senate Banking Committee hearing Wednesday that …

US closely scrutinizing export requests to China -Commerce Dept Read More »