The yen fell sharply on Friday as traders drove it towards levels that could trigger official buying after the Bank of Japan raised rates but did not offer much of a hint over future hikes. The yen fell against the dollar after the BOJ lifted its policy rate to 0.75% from 0.5% in a move that had been well telegraphed by policymakers, prompting traders to sell.
* BOJ raises rates as expected, Ueda's speech offers few hints. * Yen falls broadly, hits record low against euro. * Euro under pressure on lack of ECB outlook. * BoE cut much closer run than market expected; sterling steady. By Tom Westbrook and Amanda Cooper.
Russia's central bank Friday said its Board of Directors decided to cut the key rate by 50 basis points to 16.0%. The reduction was widely expected, wrote Scotiabank in a note to clients. Guidance noted that "monetary policy will remain tight for a long period" with inflation running at 6.6% year over year.
* BoJ hikes to 30-year high, signals more. * Fed policymakers see one rate cut in 2026. * BoE follows Fed into cautious easing. * ECB executes 'uncertain' pause, avoids guidance. By Naomi Rovnick and Alun John. LONDON, Dec 19 - Central banks in big economies are signalling a change of stance as the Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a 30-year high on Friday.
Canada will release retail sales data for October and preliminary November at 8:30 a.m. ET on Friday, said Bank of Montreal. The retail sales report will give the bank the last piece of data for the October real gross domestic product "puzzle." Spending is likely to be little changed in the month, or down a modest 0.5% excluding autos. Volumes should nudge higher in the month.
The US dollar rose against its major trading partners early Friday ahead of the release of existing home sales data for November and the final University of Michigan consumer sentiment reading for December, both at 10:00 am ET.
Conagra Brands (CAG) maintained its annual sales and profit forecasts ?on Friday, as pressured consumer ?spending and stiff ?competition weigh on ?demand ?for its pantry staples such ?as Slim ?Jim meat snacks and Act ?II ?popcorn.
A vague outlook from Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda on Friday has given investors the nerve to add to their bets against the yen, which could soon put Japan's currency back at uncomfortably low levels for a government concerned it may already be too cheap.
* Nike (NKE) slides as Q2 gross margins drop. * Oracle up as ByteDance agrees deal on TikTok US app. * Futures: S&P up 0.12%, Nasdaq up 0.24%, Dow down 0.06% By Sruthi Shankar and Shashwat Chauhan.
* Key rate cut is in line with expectations. * Inflation expected below 6% in 2025, hit target in 2027. * Putin says he did not interfere in bank's decision. * Phone-in shows some Russians question inflation figures. By Elena Fabrichnaya and Gleb Bryanski.
Nova Scotia's December 2025 forecast update revised the provincial budget balance for fiscal year 2025-26 to a deficit $1.47 billion, or 2.1% of nominal GDP, after accounting for contingencies, said Scotiabank.
Brazil's current account deficit ?reached $4.943 billion ?in November, ?central bank ?data showed ?on Friday, ?in ?line with the $4.95 ?billion ?shortfall forecast ?by economists polled by Reuters. The ?country attracted $9.82 billion in foreign ?direct investment ?in the month, ?well above the $6.5 billion forecast in the poll.
Commerzbank in its "European Sunrise" note of Friday highlighted: Markets: United States Treasuries recover into New York close, resume downtrend overnight, long end leads the Japanese government bond sell-off. Fed: Chicago Federal Reserve President Austan Goolsbee says the November inflation report contained a "lot to like" after voting to stay put at last FOMC decision.
* BOJ raises rates as expected, Ueda's speech offers few hints. * Yen falls broadly, hits record low against euro. * Euro under pressure on lack of ECB outlook. * BoE cut much closer run than market expected; sterling steady. By Tom Westbrook and Amanda Cooper.
* Futures: S&P up 0.2%, Nasdaq up 0.4%, Dow flat. U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Friday, as technology shares extended their rebound from a selloff earlier this week, while Nike (NKE) tumbled after weak China sales weighed on its quarterly results.
US futures were edging higher pre-bell Friday as lower-than-expected US inflation data fueled hopes for a Federal rate cut. The US seasonally adjusted consumer price index, a measure of inflation, rose by 2.7% in November from a year earlier, below expectations for a 3.1% increase in a survey conducted by Bloomberg.
* Markets see steady rates in 2026. * Policymakers warn about large growth, inflation risks. * Some still see downside risks. European Central Bank policymakers warned on Friday about oversized risks around their latest economic projections, making the case for caution in setting policy and not taking the option of another interest rate cut off the table just yet.
* AI jitters, Fed interest rate path among key year-end factors. * GDP, consumer confidence reports to shed more light on economy. * S&P 500 set for double-digit percentage gains in 2025, despite shaky December. By Lewis Krauskopf. NEW YORK, Dec 19 - Investors hoping for traditional holiday cheer for the U.S. stock market are encountering turbulence that could keep markets on edge into year-end.
Germany's economic recovery from three years of stagnation will get only a subdued start next year, picking up pace later on the back of higher government spending, the Bundesbank predicted on Friday in a biannual update of its economic projections.
* Wall Street futures point to gains after tech-led rally. * BOJ hikes 25 bps, signals further tightening ahead. * Japanese bond yields jump, Dollar gains 1% on yen, By Iain Withers and Wayne Cole.
An economic slowdown in Russia this year to 1% ?growth from 4.3% in ?2024 was the result of ?conscious actions ?by the ?central bank to bring ?down the inflation ?rate, President Vladimir Putin said on ?Friday. Putin ?told ?his annual press conference that, as a result ?of these actions, the inflation rate will slow to between 5.5% and 5.7% ?in ?2025 from 9.5% last year.
* Central banks' policy paths diverge. * Ukraine secures financial support from EU. * US-Venezuela tensions loom over LatAm. By Niket Nishant. Emerging market assets were on track for weekly losses after heightened geopolitical tensions and a slate of central bank decisions tempered optimism, despite tame inflation data in the United States.
* Sterling steady against euro, dollar after BoE rate cut. * BoJ rate hike prompts yen sell-off, boosting pound. * BoE's cautious stance on further rate cuts amid high inflation. By Amanda Cooper.
Japan's 10-year government bond yield jumped to a 26-year peak on Friday after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a three-decade high and signalled more policy tightening. However, the yen quickly reversed an initial knee-jerk rise and fell as much as 0.7% to 156.71 per U.S. dollar by 0754 GMT, shortly after BOJ Governor Kazuo ?Ueda's post-meeting news conference ended.
* BOJ raises rates as expected, Ueda's speech offers few hints. * Yen falls broadly, hits record low against euro. * Euro under pressure on lack of ECB outlook. * BoE cut much closer run than market expected; sterling steady. By Tom Westbrook.
The Japanese government revised down its view on public investment but largely kept its overall outlook on the economy intact in a monthly report published on Friday.
The Japanese government revised down its view on public investment but largely kept its overall outlook on the economy intact in a monthly report published on Friday.
China is expected to leave benchmark lending rates unchanged for a seventh consecutive month in December, a Reuters survey showed, despite a depressed economy and deepening woes in the property sector.
The Bank of Japan has raised its interest rates on Friday to levels unseen in three decades and signalled readiness for further hikes, taking another landmark step in ending decades of huge monetary support and near-zero borrowing costs. In a widely expected move, the BOJ raised short-term interest rates to 0.75% from 0.5% in the first increase since January.
The Bank of Japan raised interest rates on Friday to levels unseen in three decades and signalled its readiness for further hikes, taking ?another landmark step in ending decades of huge monetary support ?and near-zero borrowing costs. In a widely expected move, ?the BOJ raised short-term interest rates ?to 0.75% ?from 0.5% in the first increase since January.
By Kevin Buckland. Japan's 10-year government bond yield jumped to a 26-year peak on Friday after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a three-decade high and signalled more policy tightening. The Nikkei share average rose, led by artificial intelligence-linked stocks after U.S. peers rallied overnight following blowout forecasts from ?chipmaker Micron.
* BOJ raises rates as expected, yen eases. * Focus turns to BOJ Governor Ueda's press conference at 0630 GMT. * Euro under pressure on lack of ECB outlook. * BoE cut much closer run than market expected; sterling steady. By Tom Westbrook.
Japan's 10-year government bond yield jumped to a 26-year peak on Friday after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a three-decade high and ?signalled more policy tightening. The Nikkei share average rose, led by gains in artificial intelligence-linked stocks ?after U.S. peers rallied overnight.
Colombia's central bank is expected to leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged at its final meeting of the year on Friday, amid uncertainty about the pace of inflation's decline at a time when the economy is performing ?well.
Japan's Nikkei share average rose more than 1% on Friday and ?the 10-year government bond yields hit a 19-year ?high at 2% after the Bank ?of Japan raised interest rates ?to a ?three-decade high and signalled more policy tightening to come.
* Nikkei bounces, S&P futures flat after tech-led rally. * BOJ hikes 25 bps, signals further tightening ahead. * Yen still slips awaiting BOJ chief media conference. By Wayne Cole. Asian share markets held Wall Street-driven gains on Friday while the yen eased after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a three-decade high and left the door wide open to further tightening.
* BOJ raises rates as expected, yen eases. * Focus is on BOJ Governor Ueda's press conference at 0630 GMT. * Euro under pressure on lack of ECB outlook. * BoE cut much closer run than market expected; sterling steady. By Tom Westbrook.
* BOJ raises rates as expected, yen eases. * Euro under pressure on lack of ECB outlook. * BoE cut much closer run than market expected; sterling steady. By Tom Westbrook.
The Bank of Japan raised interest rates ?on Friday to ?levels unseen in ?three decades, taking another ?landmark ?step in ending ?decades of ?huge monetary support and near-zero borrowing ?costs. As ?widely ?expected, the central bank raised short-term interest ?rates to 0.75% from 0.5% by a unanimous vote.
Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Friday, led by tech stocks, while government bond yields edged higher ahead of a widely expected Bank of Japan interest rate hike. Equity investors took cues from U.S. trading overnight, which ?saw high-tech stocks leading all three of Wall Street's main indexes higher.
The yen weakened sharply against the dollar and other major peer currencies on Friday after the Bank of Japan raised rates to a 30-year high but did not offer clarity on future hikes. The yen fell against the dollar after the BOJ lifted its policy rate to 0.75% from 0.5% in a move that had been well-telegraphed by policymakers, prompting traders to sell.
* Dollar/yen at 155.59 as market waits on Ueda press conference. * Euro dipped slightly on lack of ECB outlook. * BoE cut much closer run than market expected; sterling steady.
MSCI's global equities gauge advanced on Friday with technology leading Wall Street higher, while the yen weakened after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a three-decade high, as widely expected, and left the door open to more tightening. Oil prices rose as traders weighed the potential impact of a supply disruption from Venezuela.
Japan's Nikkei share average advanced on Friday and Japanese government bond futures rose ahead of a Bank of Japan policy decision, with markets ?widely expecting an interest rate hike later in the day. The ?Nikkei gained 0.6% to 49,306.95, as of ?0014 GMT, and earlier jumped as ?much as ?1%. That followed a 1% drop in the previous session, ?when the index sank to ?a 3 1/2-week low.
* Nikkei bounces, S&P futures flat after tech-led rally. * BOJ expected to hike 25bps, focus on future rises. * Yen needs hawkish outlook to avoid further losses. By Wayne Cole. Asian share markets rebounded on Friday as a turnaround in tech lifted Wall Street, leaving investors counting down to a likely hike in interest rates from the Bank of Japan that could cause waves for currencies and bonds.
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.
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