News Results

* Graphic: Global asset performance http://tmsnrt.rs/2yaDPgn. * Graphic: World FX rates http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh. By Herbert Lash. An earlier rally in global stocks fizzled and the dollar strengthened on Friday as investor unease about Federal Reserve policy tightening to clamp down on inflation kindled fears of a slowdown and put risk-off sentiment back in the ascendancy.

Sterling was set for its biggest weekly gain since December 2020 against a weakening dollar as the latest economic data suggested the market might not need to scale back its expectations for Bank of England rate hikes much further. The U.S. dollar was headed for its worst week since early February, showing fatigue after the currency's breathless 10%, 14-week surge.

Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Friday defended the central bank as inflation spikes to a three-decade high and the frontrunner to take over the opposition Conservative Party pledges to fire the Bank of Canada governor if elected. "It is clear to us all that we are living through a period of global volatility.

Mexican inflation is forecast to have slowed in the first half of May, although still far above central bank targets, a Reuters poll showed Friday, reinforcing expectations of continued interest rate hikes through the rest of the year.

* Told G7 that BOJ will keep easy policy - Kuroda. * Chance of inflation rising more than expected slim - Kuroda. * BOJ's dovish stance contrasts with other G7 central banks. By Leika Kihara.

Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Friday defended the central bank as inflation spikes to a three-decade high and the frontrunner to take over the opposition Conservative Party pledges to fire the Bank of Canada governor if elected. "It is clear to us all that we are living through a period of global volatility.

U.S. Treasury yields fell for a third straight session on Friday, as investors remained concerned about growing signs of an economic slowdown even as the Federal Reserve vowed to stay aggressive with ...

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index rose on Friday to gain for a sixth consecutive week on stronger vessel rates across segments. * The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax, supramax and handysize shipping vessels, gained 55 points, or 1.7%, to 3,344 points. * The capesize index rose 141 points, or 3.2%, to 4,526 points.

Canada's finance minister Chrystia Freeland said on Friday it is important in periods of global volatility to express confidence in the central bank and a clear commitment to its independence from political interference. "It is clear to us all that we are living through a period of global volatility.

The Canadian dollar strengthened to its highest level in more than two weeks against its U.S.

Chile's central bank considered raising the benchmark interest rate by up to 150 basis points at its last meeting due to persistent inflationary pressure, according to meeting minutes released by the bank on Friday. The central bank eventually decided to raise its Monetary Policy Rate by 125 points to 8.25%, which was still more than expected by the market.

- U.S. bond funds continued to face huge outflows in the week to May 19 on fears that the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates higher than previously expected to keep inflation under control. According to Refinitiv Lipper data, investors offloaded U.S. bond funds worth $8.39 billion in the 19th straight week of net selling.

Tunisia's current account deficit is expected to widen to around 10% of GDP in 2022, against 6.8% initially forecast, the central bank governor said on Friday, as the North Africa country is suffering its worst financail crisis. In the first four months of this year, the dinar has marked a depreciation of 7% against the dollar, Marouan Abassi said.

U.S. bond funds continued to face huge outflows in the week to May 19 on fears that the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates higher than previously expected to keep inflation under control. According to Refinitiv Lipper data, investors offloaded U.S. bond funds worth $8.39 billion in the 19th straight week of net selling.

* Graphic: Global asset performance http://tmsnrt.rs/2yaDPgn. * Graphic: World FX rates http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh. By Samuel Indyk. Shares rebounded on Friday after China cut a key lending benchmark to support its economy, though a global equities gauge remained set for its longest weekly losing streak on record amid investor worries about slowing growth and high inflation.

Copper extended its recovery on Friday on optimism about a revival in demand in top metals consumer China, as a mortgage rate cut and progress in easing COVID lockdowns lifted sentiment.

- Central banks are wrestling with inflation and sliding stocks are feeling the heat, leaving investors to ponder just where the so-called "Fed put" has gone. Meeting minutes from the world's foremost policy makers may shed some light, while New Zealand and South Korean central banks ponder how big their rate hikes need to be to keep up with the Fed.

Central banks are wrestling with inflation and sliding stocks are feeling the heat, leaving investors to ponder just where the so-called "Fed put" has gone. Meeting minutes from the world's foremost policy makers may shed some light, while New Zealand and South Korean central banks ponder how big their rate hikes need to be to keep up with the Fed.

* STOXX ends week lower, erases big declines from earlier. * Richemont cautious on China growth. * Other luxury stocks slide. European shares rose on Friday, with a boost from defensive sectors after hopes of an economic recovery in major trading partner China were bolstered by more central bank stimulus, though they still ended the week in the red.

The European Central Bank can start raising interest rates, perhaps as soon as July, moving them gradually back into positive territory, Italian central bank chief Ignazio Visco told Bloomberg TV on Friday. "Inflation expectations are now at around 2% and apparently, they're going to stay there," Visco said.

Euro zone money markets on Friday ramped up their bets on a 50 basis-point interest rate hike from the European Central Bank in July that would bring the bank's policy rate to 0%. Dutch central bank governor and ECB policymaker Klaas Knot said on Tuesday that the bank should keep the door open to a 50 bps hike if upcoming data suggested inflation was "broadening further or accumulating".

The Bank of England will need to raise interest rates further to combat the risk of self-perpetuating price rises, the central bank's chief economist, Huw Pill, said on Friday. Pill said the central bank was battling the biggest inflation challenge since it gained operational independence in 1997, with inflation at a 40-year high of 9.0% and set to hit double digits later this year.

A look at the day ahead in markets from Saikat Chatterjee. Markets are starting to buckle in a week where the world's top central bank issued its most dire warning yet on the need to kill surging inflation, just as fresh signs of rapidly deteriorating growth outlook emerged. An index of world stocks is poised for its worst losing streak on record.

Markets are starting to buckle in a week where the world's top central bank issued its most dire warning yet on the need to kill surging inflation, just as fresh signs of rapidly deteriorating growth outlook emerged. An index of world stocks is poised for its worst losing streak on record.

British retail sales jumped unexpectedly in April as shoppers loaded up on alcohol and tobacco, likely a blip in an otherwise bleak trend that has driven consumer confidence to all-time lows amid a worsening cost-of-living crunch. Retail sales volumes rose 1.4% month on month after a 1.2% drop in March, the Office for National Statistics said. The wider picture remains disconcerting.

The U.S. dollar was headed for its worst week since early February against major peers on Friday, weighed down by a retreat in Treasury yields and fatigue after the currency's breathless 10%, 14-week surge.

Output of Shanghai's industries, located at the heart of manufacturing in the Yangtze River Delta, shrank 61.5% in April from a year earlier, the local statistics bureau said on Friday, slammed by a city-wide COVID lockdown. That compared with a 7.5% drop in March.

Japan's core consumer inflation in April exceeded a central bank target of 2% for the first time in seven years, but only thanks to rising import costs, not the strong domestic demand that the central bank has been trying to kindle.

* April core CPI up 2.1%, above BOJ's 2% target. * Core CPI jumps at fastest rate since March 2015. * Gain points to inflationary pressures from energy, food costs. By Daniel Leussink.

Bank Indonesia will wait a few more months to raise rates from a record low despite rising inflation and aggressive moves by the U.S. Federal Reserve, according to a Reuters poll of economists that showed a growing minority expect a hike next month.

Japanese police on Friday arrested a senior finance ministry official involved in coordinating policies with the central bank for possible assault charges, public broadcaster NHK reported.

New Zealand's central bank will hike its policy interest rate by half a percentage point to counter soaring inflation when it meets on May 25, making a hike of that magnitude for the first time at successive meetings, a Reuters poll found.

China cut its benchmark reference rate for mortgages by an unexpectedly wide margin on Friday, its second reduction this year as Beijing seeks to revive the ailing housing sector to prop up the economy.

Global equity markets rebounded after the S&P 500 pared losses that briefly took it into bear market territory, and the dollar gained on Friday, as investor unease about Federal Reserve policy tightening to curb inflation kindled fears of a recession.

The U.S. dollar headed for its worst week since early February against major peers on Friday, weighed down by a retreat in Treasury yields and fatigue after the currency's breathless 10%, 14-week surge. The dollar index, which measures it against six major rivals, was down 1.5% for the week to 102.96, on track to snap a six-week winning run.

Asian economies must be mindful of spillover risks as a decade of unconventional easing policies by major central banks is unwound faster than expected, International Monetary Fund Deputy Managing Director Kenji Okamura said. This risk applied particularly to the most vulnerable economies, said Okamura.

Asian economies must be mindful of spillover risks as a decade of unconventional easing policies by major central banks is withdrawn faster than expected, International Monetary Fund Deputy Managing Director Kenji Okamura said. This risk applied particularly to the most vulnerable economies, said Okamura, without naming them.

The U.S. Federal Reserve will lift interest rates higher by the end of this year than anticipated just a month ago, keeping alive already-significant risks of a recession, a Reuters poll of economists found.

* April core CPI up 2.1%, above BOJ's 2% target. * Core CPI jumps at fastest rate in 7 years. * Gain suggests further inflationary pressure from fuel costs. By Daniel Leussink.

Japan's core consumer prices rose 2.1% in April from a year earlier, government data showed on Friday. The core consumer price index, which includes oil products but excludes fresh food prices, compared with economists' median estimate for a 2.1% annual gain. Stripping away the effect of fresh food and energy, consumer prices rose 0.8% in April from a year ago.