Category: Macro
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U.S. Economic Growth: Q4 Performance and Early Year Slowdown
The U.S. economy exhibited strong growth in the fourth quarter, driven by robust consumer spending, although there’s evidence of a slowdown as the new year begins. The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis reported a 3.2% annualized growth rate in GDP for the last quarter, a slight adjustment from the initially reported 3.3%. This revision,…
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Housing Inflation and Federal Reserve Strategy
Federal Reserve officials anticipate a decrease in housing inflation soon, crucial for their plan to curb overall inflation and consider interest rate cuts. However, they face potential challenges as the supply of new apartments is expected to dwindle, while single-family home availability remains low, potentially causing future price pressures in a sector significant to the…
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Unexpected Drop in U.S. Unemployment Claims Signals Robust Job Growth in February
Last week, there was an unexpected decrease in the number of Americans applying for new unemployment benefits, indicating that job growth in February likely continued at a strong pace. For the week ending February 17, initial filings for state unemployment assistance decreased by 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted figure of 201,000, according to the Labor…
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FOMC Minutes Reveal Inflation Concerns and Rate Cut Caution, Impacting Market Indices and Treasury Yields
Some members of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) pointed out that inflation progress in the United States could “stagnate,” and highlighted the risks of cutting interest rates “too quickly,” according to the minutes of the January decision, published on Wednesday afternoon. “The majority of Fed members noted the risks of easing interest rates too…
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Sharper Than Expected Decline In Leading Indicators
The index of leading indicators in the USA fell more than expected in January, due in particular to a decline in the number of hours worked in manufacturing, suggesting that the US economy is slowing down, announced the Conference Board employers’ organization on Tuesday. This leading index, which foreshadows the general economic trend for the…
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Fed Maintains Interest Rate, Withdraws Mention Of possible Additional Tightening, But Still Does Not Signal Cut
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) kept interest rates unchanged in the range between 5.25% and 5.50% this Wednesday, in line with investor consensus, still giving no indication of when an expected cycle of cuts will begin, but removing from his text a section that had been alluding to possible new interest rate hikes in…
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Global Oil Markets Fluctuate Amid Middle East Tensions and Prospects of Monetary Easing
Oil futures prices fell about 1% on Thursday, as tensions disrupting maritime transport in the Red Sea eased. However, the conflict in the Middle East is worsening. The Danish shipping company Maersk reported that it has scheduled several dozen container ships to travel through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea in the coming weeks…
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Oil Exhibits a Downward Trend As the Crisis in the Red Sea is Closely Monitored
Oil is showing a downward bias after the strong gains of the previous day, as investors monitor developments in the Red Sea and some major carriers resume passage through the area, despite ongoing attacks and broader tensions in the Middle East. Benchmark indices rose more than 2% in the previous session due to fears of…
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Iron Ore Rises On Upbeat Chinese Industrial Data, Demand Hopes
Iron ore futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange in China saw a rise for the second consecutive session on Wednesday, December 27. This increase is attributed to strong industrial data and expectations of economic stimulus, coupled with robust demand from China. The most-traded iron ore contract for May on the Dalian Exchange rose by 0.5%…
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Oil Futures Surge Over 2% Following Announcement of Resumption of Maritime Traffic in the Middle East Region
The lack of disruptions in oil supply is offsetting the support for current prices due to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo, adding that trading was weak and within a narrow range, typical of holiday periods. Danish shipping company Maersk is preparing to resume maritime operations in the Red Sea…