The Bank of England lifts a key interest rate by one-quarter point
The Bank of England on Thursday matched the U.S. Federal Reserve...
The Bank of England on Thursday matched the U.S. Federal Reserve by hiking interest rates by a quarter percentage point.
The 7-2 decision, the eleventh consecutive increase, brings the U.K. base rate to 4.25% and comes after data showed inflation surprisingly accelerated in February to a year-over-year rate of 10.4%.
The central bank’s financial policy committee said the U.K. banking system maintains robust capital and strong liquidity positions and can “continue supporting the economy” even as interest rates rise.
U.S. weekly jobless claims inch lower as labor market maintains strength
The numbers: The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits last week...
The numbers: The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits last week slipped to a three-week low of 191,000 and there was little sign of erosion in an uber-strong U.S. labor market even as the economy faced fresh strains, the government said Thursday.
The number of people applying for jobless benefits is one of the best barometers of whether the economy is getting better or worse. New unemployment applications remain near historically low levels.
Big picture: Jobless claims are one of the first indicators to emit danger signals when the U.S. is headed toward a recession. It’s still not flashing a red light, or even a yellow one, as the economy comes under more duress.
Crude oil prices made another 2% gain on Wednesday....
Crude oil prices made another 2% gain on Wednesday. The one-week high of crude oil prices came as the dollar fell to a six-week low when the U.S. Federal Reserve implemented an expected small rate hike.
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1.8% on a $1.23 a barrel gain before closing at $70.90. Global benchmark Brent crude also rose 1.8% with a $1.37 a barrel increase to $76.69. That was the highest close for both crude benchmarks since March 14 reported Reuters.
April natural gas fell 18 cents to $2.17 per 1,000 cubic feet
Dow ends down over 500 points as U.S. stocks sell off in final minutes of day
Stocks were whipsawed between gains and losses before turning decidedly lower near the end of Fed...
Stocks were whipsawed between gains and losses before turning decidedly lower near the end of Fed Chair Jerome Powell's news conference, perhaps also taking a cue from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's remarks signaling no move to expand insurance on bank deposits.
But things got really ugly after Powell left the podium, with stocks accelerating their decline into the closing bell. The Dow Jones Industrial Averageended the day down around 530 points, or 1.6%, while the S&P 500slid 1.7% and the Nasdaq Compositeslumped 1.6%.
Bonds rallied, with the yield on the 2-year Treasury note dropping 19.8 basis points to 3.977%. Yields and debt prices move opposite each other. During the prior session, it had jumped by the most in one day since June 5, 2009.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell 10.6 basis points to 3.497%.
The Fed raises interest rates another quarter point in ongoing inflation battle
The Federal Reserve moved ahead with another interest rate hike...
The Federal Reserve moved ahead with another interest rate hike Wednesday, saying that inflation is expected to be hotter than they had previously thought.
The Fed lifted its benchmark fed funds rate by a quarter of one percentage point to a range of 4.75%-5%. Only a year ago, that rate was close to zero.
In a statement, the Fed said the banking system was sound and resilient. Officials said that the recent stress in the sector would likely lead to tighter credit conditions and reduce economic growth, but “the extent of these effects is uncertain.”
In a statement, the Fed said “some additional policy firming may be appropriate”to bring inflation back to the 2% target. This language replaces the previous statements that “ongoing increases” in the Fed’s benchmark rate would be needed.
