* US household debt rises to $18.8 trillion in Q4, up $191 billion from 3Q. * Mortgage delinquencies grow in lower-income areas despite overall low rates. * Student loan delinquencies elevated at 9.6%, serious delinquency rate at 16.2% By Michael S. Derby.
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Beth Hammack said on Tuesday the U.S. central bank faces no urgency to change the setting of interest rates this year amid a "cautiously optimistic" outlook for economic activity.
The European Parliament gave its first major backing to the digital euro on Tuesday, endorsing the European Council's negotiating stance for a central bank digital currency with both online and offline functionality.
The European Parliament gave its first major backing to the digital euro on Tuesday, endorsing the European Council's negotiating stance for a central bank digital currency with both online and offline functionality.
* Bessent emphasizes fair rivalry with China, avoiding decoupling. * Upcoming meetings with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng planned. * China must rebalance economy, address $1 trillion trade surplus, Bessent says. * U.S. and China agreed to defer rare earth export controls.
* Retail sales unchanged in December. * Core retail sales dip 0.1%; November core sales revised lower. By Lucia Mutikani. U.S. retail sales were unexpectedly unchanged in December as households scaled back spending on motor vehicles and other big-ticket items, potentially setting consumer spending and the economy on a slower growth path heading into the new year.
Overall credit troubles in the U.S. increased modestly but held at low levels during the fourth quarter as some parts of the mortgage market saw accelerated fraying, amid ongoing difficulties for student loan borrowers, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said in a report released on Tuesday.
* US household debt rises to $18.8 trillion in Q4, up $191 billion from 3Q. * Mortgage delinquencies grow in lower-income areas despite overall low rates. * Student loan delinquencies elevated at 9.6%, serious delinquency rate at 16.2% By Michael S. Derby.
First Citizens BancShares (FCNCA) said on Tuesday its CEO Frank Holding has been appointed to the Federal ?Reserve Board of Governors' advisory council ?for 2026. Holding will represent the Fifth ?District on behalf of ?the ?Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
The Federal Reserve under the leadership of Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trump's nominee for Fed ?chair, will be watching to ?ensure there's no "timing mismatch" on ?employment and productivity given ?rapid ?advances in artificial intelligence, U.S. Treasury Secretary ?Scott Bessent said ?on Tuesday.
Wall Street's main indexes opened higher on Tuesday after a ?sharp rally in the ?previous session as tech ?stocks bounced ?off a ?bruising rout, while investors ?parsed retail ?sales figures that kicked off a ?series of ?crucial ?economic data releases this week.
Wall Street's main indexes opened higher on Tuesday after a ?sharp rally in ?the previous session as tech ?stocks bounced ?off a ?bruising rout, while investors ?parsed retail sales ?figures that kicked off a ?series of ?crucial economic ?data releases this week.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed his country's support for efforts ?to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict ?in a phone call with ?Russian President Vladimir ?Putin on ?Tuesday, Ramaphosa's office said. "The two ?leaders also discussed ?cooperation in key international fora such as ?BRICS and ?the ?G20," South Africa's presidency said in a statement.
By Jamie McGeever. The global economy is at an odd juncture, one that points to an ugly few years for bond markets. The fiscal picture across developed economies is deteriorating rapidly and uniformly, yet unlike previous bouts of huge government spending in the last two decades, there is no global financial crisis or pandemic requiring trillions of dollars. Far from it.
U.S. retail sales were unexpectedly unchanged in December as households scaled back spending on motor vehicles and other big-ticket items, potentially setting consumer spending and the economy on a slower growth path heading into the new year.
U.S. retail sales were unexpectedly unchanged in December, putting consumer spending and the overall economy on a slower growth path heading into the new year. The flat reading in retail sales last month followed ?an unrevised 0.6% increase in November, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau on Tuesday.
Sterling dropped against the dollar and the euro on Tuesday as a broad selloff of the U.S. currency faded, while concerns about British politics and the path of Bank of England monetary policy continued to weigh.
Greek industrial output rose by 3.9% year-on-year in December, after after an upwardly revised 4.3% increase in ?November, data from statistics service ELSTAT ?showed on Tuesday. A breakdown of index ?components showed manufacturing production rose ?3.8% ?from the same month in 2024.
U.S. tariffs are weighing on euro zone growth and inflation but the most affected sectors are also sensitive to interest rates, so cutting borrowing costs could offset the downward price pressures, a European Central Bank blog post said ?on Tuesday.
* EM stocks up 0.7%, FX flat. * Turkish industrial production drops 2.1% in December. * Hungary's forint slips from over 2-year peak. By Pranav Kashyap. - Most central and eastern European currencies held their ground on Tuesday, while regional stocks were mixed as investors braced for a data-heavy week.
* Tariffs lower euro zone inflation by reducing demand, outweighing supply effects. * ECB economists' study shows sectors hit by tariffs are sensitive to interest rate changes. * Euro zone exports to US down 6.5% year-on-year in latest 3 months, affecting inflation.
* Nonfarm payrolls data due Wednesday. * Global stocks gain in Asian trade. * Dollar edges up after falling 0.8% on Monday. * US job gains could be lower in coming months, says Hassett. By Noel John.
* German 10-year yield drops amid political shifts. * UK political tensions affect British 10-year gilt yield. * US economic data may influence Federal Reserve policy expectations. By Sophie Kiderlin.
Insurance and asset management company Principal Financial (PFG) reported a rise in fourth-quarter profit on Monday, helped by increased premiums and improved returns on its ?investments. Strong market performance in the last quarter of ?2025, supported by U.S. Federal Reserve rate cuts, ?lifted investment returns for insurers such ?as Principal ?Financial.
Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran on Monday argued the Trump administration's policy of trade tariffs has proved more benign than many had feared, in comments that argued that foreigners and their firms are the ones primarily paying for the tax hikes, rather than Americans.
Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran said Monday a weaker ?dollar isn't much of ?an issue for ?the central bank ?right ?now. The kind of decline ?seen in ?the dollar "doesn't matter that much ?for consumer ?inflation" ?and only would if it were very ?dramatic, Miran said at an appearance at the Boston University Questrom ?School ?of Business.
* Nonfarm payrolls, CPI and retail sales reports due this week. * Markets expect 50 basis points of Fed interest rate cuts this year. * Chinese regulators advise limiting US Treasury holdings due to risks. By Chuck Mikolajczak.
* Hassett cites higher productivity for job growth slowdown. * Fed faces challenge with falling worker demand, supply. * Warsh has said productivity growth may influence Fed policy decisions. By Doina Chiacu and Howard Schneider.
White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said on Monday that U.S. job gains could be lower in the coming months due to slower labor force growth and higher productivity, weighing into a debate that is also underway at the Federal Reserve and promises to shape the central bank's coming policy decisions.
* Indexes: Dow down 0.05%, S&P 500 up 0.5%, Nasdaq up 0.9% * S&P 500's software services index gains over 2% * Kroger (KR) jumps after naming ex-Walmart executive as CEO. * Nonfarm payrolls, inflation data due later in the week. By Twesha Dikshit and Nikhil Sharma.
* Nonfarm payrolls, CPI and retail sales reports due this week. * Markets expect 50 basis points of Fed interest rate cuts this year. * Chinese regulators advise limiting US Treasury holdings due to risks. By Chuck Mikolajczak.
The surprise resignation of Francois Villeroy de Galhau as French central bank governor is unlikely to change the European Central Bank's steady policy course at a time of rare unity among the euro zone's top rate setters.
Americans were less worried about the direction of inflation and labor market prospects as of last month, although concerns about the state of their finances continued to mount, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said in a report released on Monday.
* Indexes: Dow down 0.3%, S&P 500 down 0.04%, Nasdaq up 0.08% * Eli Lilly (LLY) gains after Hims abandons $49 weight-loss pill. * Kroger (KR) jumps after firm names ex-Walmart executive as CEO. * Nonfarm payrolls report due later in the week. By Twesha Dikshit and Nikhil Sharma.
* China's central bank buys gold for 15th consecutive month. * Delayed US jobs, inflation data due later this week. By Anmol Choubey. Gold prices rose on Monday, buoyed by a softer dollar as investors braced for a week packed ?with U.S. economic data that could offer more clues on the U.S. Federal Reserve's monetary policy.
* Central bank expected to lift year-end forecast from 13-19% * Bank could slow or even pause rate cuts in months ahead. * Near 5% monthly inflation in January higher than expected. * Uneven monetary easing cycle began in late 2024. By Nevzat Devranoglu and Jonathan Spicer.
Wall Street's main indexes opened lower on Monday ?after a week ?when AI disruption concerns ?caused technology ?stocks ?to tumble, while investors ?awaited crucial ?economic data for insight into ?the ?U.S. ?Federal Reserve's interest-rate path. The Dow Jones Industrial ?Average fell 67.9 points, or 0.14%, to 50,047.79 at the ?open.
Wall Street's main indexes opened lower on Monday ?after a week ?when AI disruption ?concerns caused technology ?stocks ?to tumble, while investors ?awaited ?crucial economic data for insight into ?the ?U.S. ?Federal Reserve's interest-rate path. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ?fell 67.9 points, or 0.14%, to 50,047.79 at the open.
* Villeroy to stand down in June, more than a year before end of his term. * Early exit allows Macron to name successor before presidential election. * Opposition RN lawmaker criticises move. * Villeroy was vocal policy dove on ECB council. By Leigh Thomas.
The Bank of England named RBC Capital Markets, BMO Capital Markets, ?HSBC and Morgan Stanley (MS) ?on Monday as joint lead ?managers for an ?upcoming ?sale of a three-year U.S. dollar ?bond.
* TSX up 1.4% * Miners lead as gold rebounds. * Consumer staples record biggest weekly gain ever. * Canada's unemployment rate falls to 6.5% By Utkarsh Hathi. Canada's main stock index jumped ?on Friday in a broad-based rally led by mining shares as precious metals rebounded on safe-haven demand, ?setting up the index to finish a volatile week with healthy gains.
The European Central Bank is equally likely to ?raise or cut interest ?rates but it ?is hard ?to know when ?any such move will ?take ?place given the prevailing uncertainty about trade ?and ?geopolitics, ?ECB policymaker Gediminas ?imkus said on Monday.
* Offer price of 15.60 euros/share implies $9.2 bln valuation. * InPost to expand European reach, give FedEx (FDX) access to its parcel locker network. * FedEx (FDX) and holding firm Advent will own 37% each in InPost. * Shareholders representing 48% of capital committed to deal, at least 80% needed. By Alessandro Parodi, Rafal Wojciech Nowak and Alicja Surdy.
* Japan's Takaichi forges historic election win. * AI splinters into winners and losers. * US CPI, non-farm payrolls released. The outcome of Japan's snap election, a heavy dose of key U.S. data, earnings season, and a slide in tech shares suggest traders will have little downtime in the coming week.
China's yuan edged higher on Monday, flirting with the strongest level in more than 2-1/2 years as the dollar weakened after a U.S. Federal Reserve official said there's room to cut interest rates. Sentiment was also aided ?by a stronger guidance rate and data showing China's foreign exchange reserves rose more than expected ?in January.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday he would not expect the Federal Reserve to ?move quickly to shrink its balance sheet, ?even under Fed chief nominee ?Kevin Warsh, who has ?criticized the ?U.S. central bank's bond purchases.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday he would not expect the Federal Reserve to move quickly to shrink its balance sheet, even under Fed chief nominee Kevin Warsh, who has criticized the ?U.S. central bank's bond purchases.
* Dow industrials hit 50,000 on Friday as stocks rebound. * Software swoon draws questions about AI's impact. * Jobs report due on Wednesday, CPI on Friday in busy data week. By Lewis Krauskopf.
Bitcoin could drop further? after wiping out all of its price gains since the election of U.S. President Donald Trump as liquidity is expected to remain thin for the near future. Bitcoin's slump alongside other digital asset prices coincides with investor concerns about inflated tech valuations and the uncertain path of U.S. Federal Reserve rate cuts.
In general the bond market is volatile, and fixed income securities carry interest rate risk. (As interest rates rise, bond prices usually fall, and vice versa. This effect is usually more pronounced for longer-term securities.) Fixed income securities also carry inflation risk and credit and default risks for both issuers and counterparties. Unlike individual bonds, most bond funds do not have a maturity date, so avoiding losses caused by price volatility by holding them until maturity is not possible.
Lower-quality debt securities generally offer higher yields, but also involve greater risk of default or price changes due to potential changes in the credit quality of the issuer. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to loss.
Before investing, consider the funds' investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus or, if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully.