Macroeconomic data, trends, and policy developments.
Coverage of key economic indicators, central bank policy decisions, inflation trends, labor data, and growth signals. This category focuses on the macroeconomic forces that shape markets, interest rates, and long-term capital allocation.
7,195 total articles
Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf said lowering interest rates before there is a clear end in sight to the Iran conflict would be the wrong move. Speaking at the Economic Club of Washington on April 20 in New York, Scharf described the U.S. economy as still strong despite market volatility, highlighted continued consumer spending growth of 5 to 7% com…
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said the bank requires additional information before making firm monetary policy decisions on the economic fallout from the war in Iran. While energy prices rose last month, they have not yet produced the second-round price effects that would push the ECB into its adverse scenario. With the April 30…
ECB President Christine Lagarde said the economic effects of the war in Iran have not reached the central bank's adverse scenario and more data is needed before making firm monetary policy decisions. While oil prices are higher than the ECB's baseline assumptions, natural gas is below baseline and there are limited signs of wider supply disruptions…
Fitch Ratings says the outlook for U.S. credit risk has worsened entering the second quarter of 2026, citing two primary threats: the war involving Iran and a software-related disruption. The agency highlights potential stress transmission into business development companies (BDCs) and collateralized loan obligations (CLOs), though it notes that cu…
Portuguese authorities say they are monitoring jet fuel availability closely and are confident that airports will not experience shortages in the coming months. The Infrastructure Minister said the government is in contact with oil firms and is aware of stock levels at national airports, while energy company Galp stated current production, inventor…
Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trump’s pick for the next Federal Reserve chair, said at his confirmation hearing Tuesday that he would defend the central bank’s independence and keep its focus on its core mandate. In prepared testimony, Warsh warned that the Fed’s autonomy is most endangered when it ventures into fiscal or social policy areas beyond…
Wells Fargo Chief Executive Charlie Scharf cautioned that cutting interest rates ahead of clear resolution in the Iran conflict would be ill-advised. He highlighted continued U.S. consumer spending despite rising gasoline costs, defended the resilience of private credit markets, and emphasized the importance of Federal Reserve independence.
The rapid uptake of GLP-1 class weight-loss medications is altering consumer behavior in the roughly $40 billion U.S. cannabis market, industry participants and experts say. Retailers are adjusting recommendations on edibles and inhalable products as users on GLP-1 therapies report reduced appetite and uncertainty around altered effects, while rese…
Kevin Warsh, President Biden's nominee for Federal Reserve chair, has amended his financial disclosure to state he will divest holdings in the iShares S&P/TSX 60 Index (XIU) if confirmed. The pledge, filed April 17 to the Fed’s ethics officer and amending an April 10 filing, follows guidance that his prospective duties could affect the fund’s finan…
The Bank of Canada’s first-quarter 2026 consumer survey indicates households anticipate the Middle East war will weaken Canada’s economy and lift inflation. The survey—conducted in February with follow-up interviews into early March and a dedicated survey after the conflict began—shows persistent cost-of-living concerns, softer labour market sentim…
A Bank of Canada Business Outlook Survey conducted in early 2026 found a modest improvement in business sentiment, with fewer firms planning for a recession, stronger investment intentions and hiring plans near historical averages. While firms surveyed before the Middle East war expected stable input and selling-price growth, follow-up calls after …
U.S. banks reported a marked rise in commercial lending last week, signaling that companies are drawing on credit to support operations even as inflation, geopolitical tensions tied to the Iran war, and uneven labor trends cloud the outlook. Large lenders showed double-digit growth in business loans, while consumer borrowing expanded more modestly …
A Bank of Canada quarterly survey found that Canadian firms' outlooks were improving in February, before the Iran war began on Feb. 28. A subsequent, smaller March survey of firms likely to be directly affected showed many businesses expected increases in input prices, particularly for fuel, freight, fertilizers and through exchange-rate movements.…
Peter Magyar, Hungary's incoming prime minister, unveiled seven of the 16 ministers in his new cabinet and named Anita Orban as foreign minister. His Tisza party, which won a supermajority at the April 12 election, has pledged to tackle corruption and restore Hungary's ties with the European Union. Magyar gave entrenched appointees placed by the pr…
Federal antitrust prosecutors are conducting a criminal investigation into large meatpacking firms that supply American consumers, according to reporting that cites people familiar with the matter. The inquiry comes after a presidential request last November to examine beef companies accused of manipulating rancher cattle prices and increasing cost…
A refund portal established by U.S. Customs and Border Protection began accepting claims on Monday, prompting thousands of companies to file requests to recover tariffs a court found unlawful. While the system has handled a heavy volume of submissions without collapsing, some users report intermittent upload failures and slowdowns as they submit la…
A recent poll of economists finds Mexico will likely experience another year of sub-2% growth combined with inflation close to the central bank's target range in 2026, with trade negotiations with the United States and Canada cited as a major drag. The survey points to a slight economic pickup this year and a further gradual recovery beyond 2026, b…
The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from Bank of America and seven other major banks challenging a lower court's decision to certify a $12 billion class action by U.S. cities. The suit, brought by municipalities including Baltimore, Philadelphia and San Diego, alleges the banks colluded from 2008 to 2016 to inflate rates on thousands o…
U.S. homebuilders are preparing for a difficult year as a mix of new tariffs, the Iran war and persistent inflation lift input costs and depress buyer activity. Companies are using incentives to protect sales, but analysts warn margin pressure may force further reductions in starts and earnings guidance as spring selling underperforms.
Canada's Consumer Price Index rose 2.4% year-over-year in March, up from 1.8% in February, driven principally by a historic monthly jump in gasoline prices. Excluding gasoline, core inflation eased to 2.2% year-over-year. Food price gains and province-wide increases were also reported, while Statistics Canada and economists highlighted both base-ye…
Barclays' tracking model shows U.S. GDP growing at a 2.3% quarter-on-quarter annualized rate in the first quarter, a reading notably above the GDPNow estimate. The bank attributes much of the outperformance to the normalization of government spending after last year’s federal shutdown, and it retains multi-year growth forecasts while flagging softe…
Canada's annual consumer price index rose to 2.4% in March, with a 0.9% monthly increase led by a sharp jump in gasoline costs after crude oil shipments were disrupted by the Iran war. Transportation and grocery prices were the main contributors to the headline rise, while core inflation measures remained relatively stable.
Venezuela emerged as the focal point of optimism at recent IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington, where renewed engagement with the IMF, rising oil prices and signs of improving diplomatic ties spurred investor interest in restructuring the country's large stock of defaulted debt. Delegates described packed briefings hosted by major banks, a…
Major institutional investors, organized in a Bondholder Working Group linked to the London Coalition on Sustainable Sovereign Debt, have proposed inserting contractual clauses into future sovereign bonds that would permit eligible emerging countries to suspend debt payments for up to 12 months during defined crises. The measure aims to provide pre…
The United States, serving as the G20 chair, announced it will host additional meetings in the coming weeks to address how the war in the Middle East is affecting food supplies and fertilizer flows. Finance ministers and central bank governors discussed the issue at a spring meeting on April 16, but stopped short of committing to a coordinated acti…
