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While shorter-term inflation expectations understandably rose as a result of the Middle East conflict, longer-term expectations remained largely anchored, even for those who responded to the surveys after the spike in global oil prices, said Desjardins following Monday's release of the Bank of Canada Q1 business and consumer surveys.

The Toronto Stock Exchange is down 27 points at midday as Middle East peace prospects grow fainter. Miners, down 0.5%, is the worst performer, as precious metals prices decline. Healthcare and energy, up 2% and 0.9% are the best performers. On the economic front, all eyes were on the release of Canadian CPI for March.

Kevin Warsh, U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Federal Reserve, will tell lawmakers at his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday that he is "committed to ensuring that the conduct of monetary policy remains strictly independent," according to prepared remarks released on Monday.

* Warsh pledges to work with the administration, Congress on non-monetary Fed matters. * He reprises criticisms of Fed overreach. * Warsh says Fed independence is threatened by its failure to maintain price stability. By Ann Saphir and Doina Chiacu.

Former Fed nominee Judy Shelton unloaded on Fed Chair Jerome Powell in a Sunday Wall Street Journal op-ed, branding the central bank?s 2% inflation target a policy of ?intentional debasement? and invoking James Madison?s view that a depreciating currency is unconstitutional because it erodes property rights. The timing is not subtle.

Federal Reserve Chair nominee Kevin Warsh has pledged to divest from a foreign-oriented investment fund?if confirmed to lead the U.S. central bank, according to an updated financial disclosure filing.

Federal Reserve Chair nominee Kevin Warsh has pledged to divest from a foreign-oriented investment fund if confirmed to lead the U.S. central bank, according to an updated financial disclosure filing. The fund that Warsh says he will divest from targets Canadian equities.

The rise in Canadian headline consumer price index growth to 2.4% year over year in March was primarily driven by higher energy prices due to conflict in the Middle East, but broader underlying inflation pressures showed further signs of easing under the surface, said RBC. Year-over-year price growth also continues to be distorted heavily by tax changes, noted the bank after Monday's CPI data.

With consumers facing a 13% increase in energy costs in March, Canada's consumer price index rose 0.9% month over month, said Desjardins after Monday's CPI data. However, that was slightly below expectations as CPI excluding food and energy posted a surprisingly weak flat reading, noted the bank.

The 2.4% headline reading, driven by a 0.9% non-seasonally adjusted month-over-month increase, or 0.5% after seasonal adjustment, was actually slightly below the consensus expectation of 2.6%, although still a sharp acceleration from 1.8% in the prior month, said CIBC.

Canadian headline consumer price index inflation jumped up to 2.4% year over year in March, slightly less than consensus expectations, said TD after Monday's CPI data. Higher energy prices were a big part of the story, with inflation excluding energy up a more "modest" 2.2% year over year, noted the bank. Prices at the pump soared 21% month over month in March -- the largest increase on record.

Canadian consumer prices "popped" 0.9% month over month in March, lifting the year over year headline inflation rate to 2.4% from 1.8% the prior month, noted Bank of Montreal after Monday's consumer price index data.

The U.S. Federal Reserve's vice chair for supervision, Michelle Bowman, has told big bank executives that she does not expect the industry to stage another aggressive pushback in a bid to win further capital relief, according to three people with knowledge of the communications.

Everyone knew that Canada's inflation would jump in March due to higher gasoline prices, but the only question remaining was how high would it jump, said CIBC after Monday's consumer price index data.

The Canadian consumer price index increased 2.4% year over year in March, up from an increase of 1.8% year over year in February, said the country's statistical agency on Monday. March's CPI was lower than the 2.6% year-over-year consensus figure provided by Scotiabank.

Canada updates the consumer price index for March at 8:30 a.m. ET on Monday, said Scotiabank. Consensus sits at 1.1% month-over-month seasonally unadjusted, noted the bank, which estimates a 0.9% figure. The range is from 0.9-1.3%, pointed out Scotiabank.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung formally appointed Shin Hyun-song, a Bank of International Settlements economist, as governor of the Bank of Korea on Monday, South Korea's Newsis news agency reported. Shin is set to take office as central bank chief on Tuesday for a four-year term and is expected to chair his first rate-setting monetary policy meeting on May 28.

The U.S. will host further talks in coming weeks for the Group of 20 major economies on the impact of the war in the Middle East on food and fertilizer, as it continues to push for coordinated action.

The Canadian consumer price index report for March is the key release at 8:30 a.m. ET on Monday and it's going to show much higher headline inflation, said Bank of Montreal. The bank noted that oil prices surged as conflict broke out in the Middle East, driving gasoline prices sharply higher, which alone will drive inflation up about 0.7 percentage point in March.

The US dollar was mixed against its major trading partners early Monday -- up versus the pound and yen, down versus the euro and Canadian dollar -- as the focus turns to retail sales data on Tuesday and the S&P Global flash estimates on Thursday. Federal Reserve officials are in a quiet period ahead of the April 28-29 Federal Open Market Committee meeting.

Higher gasoline prices in March in Canada, up 21% from February, are expected to push year-over-year growth in the headline consumer price index up to 2.5% from 1.8% in February, while inflation excluding food and energy ticks slightly higher to 2.2%, said RBC in a preview published Friday. Canada is scheduled to release the CPI for March at 8:30 a.m. ET on Monday.

This week's focus turns to March inflation data, which will help clarify how much of the recent energy shock resulting from the Iran war is feeding through beyond gasoline, said TD. Canada is slated to release the consumer price index for March at 8:30 a.m. ET on Monday.

Canadian housing starts decreased to 235,900 annualized units in March, down 6% month over month, said TD after Friday's data from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.. The volatile starts data pulled back in March after the prior month's gain. On a trend basis, starts are well down from their September 2025 high.

Kevin Warsh, picked by President Donald Trump to succeed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, has big plans for the central bank once he takes the helm. As San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said Friday, "he'll come in with an idea of what he would like to think about and do. Lawmakers at Warsh's Tuesday confirmation hearing will surely have lots of questions about those ideas.

After more than a decade criticizing the U.S. central bank, former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh faces a mark-to-market moment in a Senate hearing on Tuesday when lawmakers will likely press the Fed chief nominee to flesh out his monetary policy and economic ideas and calls for fundamental change.

* Warsh advocates regime change, lower rates and smaller balance sheet. * He calls for narrowing Fed's remit and more coordination with Treasury. * Criticizes current Fed communication, urges less 'cacophony' and clearer policy direction. Kevin Warsh, picked by President Donald Trump to succeed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, has big plans for the central bank once he takes the helm.

* Senate Banking Committee to scrutinize Warsh's Fed reform agenda, policy views. * Session on Tuesday is next step in tangled path to confirmation. * Former Fed governor has long track record of central bank criticism to unpack, detail. By Howard Schneider.

FITCH: * FITCH REVISES PHILIPPINES' OUTLOOK TO NEGATIVE; AFFIRMS AT 'BBB' * FITCH ON PHILIPPINES: AFFIRMATION REFLECTS OUR BASELINE THAT, DESPITE RISING RISKS, MEDIUM-TERM GDP GROWTH WILL REMAIN ROBUST. * FITCH: PHILIPPINES HIGHLY EXPOSED TO MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT GIVEN ITS RELIANCE ON ENERGY IMPORTS & POTENTIAL MODERATION OF REMITTANCES FROM GULF REGION.

Pablo Hern?ndez de Cos, General Manager of the?Bank for International Settlements, said Monday that stablecoins present both ?opportunities and challenges,? urging coordinated efforts to move forward. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies designed to maintain a stable value by pegging it to a reserve asset.

GUANGZHOU, China, April 20, 2026 XTransfer, the World's Leading B2B Cross-Border Trade Payment Platform, released its latest figures at the 139th China Import and Export Fair. In the first quarter of this year, emerging markets across Asia, Africa, and Latin America accounted for 73% of XTransfer's inbound cross-border payment collections, with 45% increase year-on-year.

Japanese government bonds rallied on Monday as investors gauged how inflationary pressures will affect the timing of the rate increases by the central bank. The benchmark 10-year JGB yield, which last week touched a 29-year high of 2.49%, fell 2.5 basis points to 2.395%. The five-year yield, which jumped to a record 1.9% on April 13, slid 2 bps to 1.815%. Yields move inversely to bond prices.

The Bank for International Settlements' chief has made a renewed call for international cooperation on how stablecoins are used, saying this is vital to prevent severe market fragmentation. The central bankers' central bank, as the BIS is known, has long raised concerns about stablecoins - a type of cryptocurrency usually pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar.

The head of the Bank for International Settlements has made a renewed call for international cooperation on how stablecoins are used, describing it as vital to prevent severe market fragmentation. The central bankers' central bank, as the BIS is known, has long raised concerns about stablecoins - a type of cryptocurrency usually pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar.

Research from the BCG Henderson Institute Details Four Plausible Scenarios for the World over the Next 25 Years, Based on Analysis of More Than 100 Megatrends and a Century of Historical Data BOSTON, April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The global economy could follow markedly different paths over the next 25 years.

Japanese government bonds rallied on Monday as markets awaited an inflation report from the central bank to gauge the timing of the next interest rate increase. The benchmark 10-year JGB yield, which last week touched a 29-year high of 2.49%, fell 2 basis points to 2.4%. The five-year yield, which jumped to a record 1.9% on April 13, slid 1 bp to 1.825%. Yields move inversely to bond prices.

The global economy cannot afford further Strait of Hormuz uncertainty, the CEO of Abu Dhabi state oil company ADNOC said on Sunday, adding that the waterway should not operate under threat. "Hormuz belongs to the world.

The yen may come under further pressure if markets see the Bank of Japan as being too slow in addressing inflationary risks, Asian Development Bank President Masato Kanda said.

* US-Japan interest rate gap behind yen's weakness, Kanda says. * Worry about Japan's fiscal sustainability may also weaken yen. * Kanda urges countries to keep fuel subsidies targeted, temporary. By Leika Kihara. The yen may come under further pressure if markets see the Bank of Japan as being too slow in addressing inflationary risks, Asian Development Bank President Masato Kanda said.

* Central bank relies on scenarios amid volatile commodity prices. * South Africa faces no immediate fuel shortages. * Fertilizer impact unclear until autumn. By Libby George. South Africa's central bank governor told Reuters that it was difficult to see a near-term path for easing interest rates due to the volatility from the war in the Middle East and its impact on inflation.

The U.S. Federal Reserve's vice chair for supervision, Michelle Bowman, has told big bank executives that she does not expect the industry to stage another aggressive pushback in a bid to win further capital relief, according to three people with knowledge of the communications.