(Adds economist’s comments, background)
MEXICO CITY, May 13 (Reuters) - Mexico’s central bank on Thursday kept its key interest rate steady, as expected, in a unanimous decision by its five-member board that reflected growing concerns about the path of inflation and expectations the next move would likely be a hike.
For the second meeting in a row, the Bank of Mexico, known locally as Banxico, kept the rate unchanged at 4.0%, after cutting it by 25 basis points in February.
Banxico said that inflation expectations for 2021 had risen since its last monetary policy meeting. It said expectations for the medium and long-term periods remained stable above the 3% target.
Synopsis
Equities in Taipei pulled back from early losses of nearly 8.6 per cent while the Taiwan dollar recovered to hold steady after the country s deputy finance minister stepped in to call for calm, saying the stock market s fundamentals were sound.
Reuters
Indonesian markets were closed for the Eid festival. Markets in India, Malaysia and Singapore will also be on holiday on Thursday for the festival.
Taiwan stocks closed 4 per cent lower on Wednesday and clocked their worst day in more than a year as authorities mulled tighter restrictions to tackle COVID-19 cases, while other Asian equities fell on concerns of growing U.S. inflationary pressure.
By Reuters Staff
2 Min Read
FILE PHOTO: The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston s President and CEO Eric S. Rosengren speaks in New York, April 17, 2013. REUTERS/Keith Bedford/File Photo
(Reuters) - The Federal Reserve is exploring the technology that would be required to establish a central bank digital currency, but more research needs to be done before it would move forward with a currency, Boston Fed Bank President Eric Rosengren said on Wednesday.
“It is important to highlight that this is exploratory work, and any decision to move forward with such a currency would depend on a variety of factors beyond the technological feasibility and implementation,” Rosengren said in remarks prepared for a virtual event organized by Harvard Law School.
The U.S. Federal Reserve has asked lenders to start providing information on the measures they are taking to mitigate climate change-related risks to their balance sheets, according to four people with knowledge of the matter.
By Reuters Staff
1 Min Read
WASHINGTON, May 12 (Reuters) - The U.S. economy is in a “transitional period” as it reopens from the pandemic, with inflation likely to be volatile and workers closely considering their options, Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Raphael Bostic said.
Both the demand for and the supply of workers, goods and services is unsettled now, Bostic said, and “we are going to see a lot of volatility in prices and pricing . Workers are trying to figure out what their place should be post pandemic.”
The Fed has been surprised over the last week by a 4.2% annual inflation rate reported on Wednesday, and a weak April jobs report last week.