From new york, heres the bbc� s north America Business correspondent, michelle fleury. Stubborn inflation pushes back the timing of the first rate cut. The Us Federal Reserve voted to keep its Benchmark Lending Rate at a 23 year high on wednesday. Officials have said they want more certainty that inflation is under control before they Lower Borrowing costs. They do not have that yet. Here is chair, jerome powell, during his press conference. The economy has made considerable progress towards our dual mandate objectives. Inflation has eased substantially over the past year, while the Labour Market has remained strong. And that is very good news. But inflation is still too high, further progress in bringing it down is not assured and the path forward is uncertain. We are fully committed to returning inflation to our 2 goal. While the prices of many goods have fallen, from cars to furniture, an increase in housing and Petrol Prices have contributed to a recent rise in consumer inflation. With progress on inflation taking longer than expected, hopes for lower rates have dimmed. One scenario that could change that calculation . Chair powell said if the Labour Market unexpectedly weakened, that could spur rate cuts. And sweetening the mood on wall street, the Dowjones Industrial Average closed higher, after the fed chair implied that the Central Banks next move was unlikely to be a rate hike. Joining me now is steve blitz, chief us economist at ts lombard. Good morning to you and welcome to the programme. Steady as she goes then for the us. I think, actually, ithink, actually, i i think, actually, i think the bond market got it right, it actually eased a little bit with what he did. On the one hand he said the economy was very strong in the First Quarter, inflation was higher than they thought but, you know what, we like where we are so were going to take off out of the distribution of possibilities rate hikes and we will is conditions in the market, the Coupon Market by slashing the pace of qt. Stocks rallied. They came off but it is more of a complicated story. Whats that data telling us . There are some prizes that remain stubbornly high, others have dropped. What are we looking at . Have dropped. What are we lookin at . ~. � , looking at . What hes looking at and what looking at . What hes looking at and what most looking at . What hes looking at and what most economists| looking at . What hes looking. At and what most economists are looking at art Service Prices without rent and the reason is those most directly reflect wage growth because it is pretty much pastoral. But i tend to take a more holistic view of this stuff. In any cycle, different things, and even within cycles, timing, things go up faster, things go down, you forget about all the Special Factors over time when you look back and you see a pattern and the pattern is that right now, three rates have in prices without food and energy are running ahead of the year the year over year price increase against a backdrop of really above very strong job against. Go ahead, im sorry. Im sure if the minutes are out yet of the meetings and will be interesting to see. We have the elections coming up. What are your thoughts on mr bell not buckling under political pressure to make a cut . Jerome powell. Pressure to make a cut . Jerome powell. Pressure to make a cut . Jerome powell. That is well in kee in. Jerome powell. That is well in keeping with jerome powell. That is well in keeping with the jerome powell. That is well in keeping with the tradition jerome powell. That is well in keeping with the tradition of i keeping with the tradition of the fed. They have never not hiked or not cut during a president ial election if the economy demands it. The problem is, this is a more nuanced event if they do cut. They are not going to cut because the economy is slowing down but theyre going to cut because inflation is well below where they think the front rates should be and different rates need to adjust downward. It is easy to us, to the markets, to understand what is going on but from a political standpoint, it would look like the committee to re electjoe biden. It is going to be much later if he does not get it injune but having said that, if suddenly unemployment skyrockets up or inflation skyrockets up, even if it is right in the middle of the conventions, they will do what they need to do to stabilise the economy. Thank ou ve stabilise the economy. Thank you very much stabilise the economy. Thank you very much. Thank stabilise the economy. Thank you very much. Thank you. I the disruptions and diversions of Container Ships away from the red sea is potentially causing container ports in the western Mediterranean Sea to hit near capacity, which could cause more supply chain problems. A recent update by the danish shipping and logistics company, maersk, showed they are continuing to monitor Storage Density Levels across Western Mediterranean hubs, especially in barcelona, tangier and algeciras. Algeria. Maersk also reports 01 Results Today and is expected to post lower earnings due to a drop in Freight Rates. So how is the situation in the red sea Impacting Maersk and the shipping sector overall . Live now to peter sand, Chief Analyst at xeneta. Hello is there to you, peter. Good bonding. What are we expecting from maersk and what impacts are we seeing . Following two quarters of lossmaking performers in their Liner Business in 03 and 04 we should definitely expect profits return to the whole of the maersk as well as the Ocean Freight business because the situation in the red sea particularly have turned the market on its head. The Container Shipping Industry was looking for a structural overcapacity that would hold the business for years ahead of us and now the red sea disruption comes about and we can see another platform where Freight Rates went to 5000 in a matter of weeks and we see the important long Term Contracts jumping 200 important long Term Contracts jumping 200 300 important long Term Contracts jumping 200 300 only from that crisis so it is kind of like a blessing in disguise. Maersk say they are monitoring what impact it is having and the Western Mediterranean. How much longer do you think ports like this can absorb the shocks of what is going on in the middle east . Indie of what is going on in the middle east . Of what is going on in the middle east . We have really seen a dramatic middle east . We have really seen a dramatic increase middle east . We have really seen a dramatic increase in. Middle east . We have really i seen a dramatic increase in the number of Transit Containers in a pot like barcelona up by 48 in the First Quarter this year. Port. They also need the smallerfeeder ships port. They also need the smaller feeder ships to get the boxes out and go to the eastern mediterranean. Obviously, the parts of the Mediterranean Sea most impacted when you cannot transit the red sea right now so how much and can they go . Well, they have been able to process more boxes than they do right now but obviously it is clocking up and the longer this goes on, Different Solutions must be found by the carriers and shippers as they feel the brunt of it. Do and shippers as they feel the brunt of it. And shippers as they feel the brunt of it. Do you think these are solutions brunt of it. Do you think these are solutions that brunt of it. Do you think these are solutions that are brunt of it. Do you think these are solutions that are going i brunt of it. Do you think these j are solutions that are going to be implemented long term, in a case of Lessons Learned and were going to have to rethink so not not caught out again . I think we see more and more disruptions coming about with higherfrequency and many disruptions coming about with higher frequency and many of them are from political aspect so we talk more about the problems from a political aspect, globaltrade problems from a political aspect, global trade and everyone in the manufacturing factor are trying to find alternatives to the Current Business status quo but then again this is a massive efficient business already set P Efficient Business already set up so that should not prevent anyone from making alternatives but easy one is to fill up your inventory is ahead of anyone else but no one has a crystal ball like that, it is expensive and do we have the money to spend on that when it works very well in a few months again and rates drop from the current level down to where they were only half a year ago at 1800 . I doubt it. Again, thank you very much for your analysis. You are welcome. Politicians in india are recognizing women as a significant force in these elections. Of the countrys billion voters, nearly half are women. As more women head to the Polling BoothsPolitical Parties are courting them with various pro women schemes and policies. Archana shukla reports from the Southern Indian State of karnata ka. An exhausting wait. But chitras daily commute in rural karnataka is easier once she hops on. Women ride forfree in buses under a State Government scheme. For chitra, its a ticket to financial freedom. Translation i save at least 1096 to 1596 of my salary and it helps in managing household expenses. Besides, we can now travel for work or pilgrimages without thinking of budget. Free bus rides are quite popular in several indian states, especially among lower income groups. This way more women access job opportunities. Opposition leader rahul gandhi, whose party governs the state of karnataka, is hoping these voters will reward their efforts in this election. Women now make up for nearly half of the countrys voter base. And with a broader social change happening with better education awareness, most women now decide their vote independently, making them a highly sought after electorate for all Political Parties. And this is why all Political Parties are out to woo them with incentives from Cash Handouts to free rations, money to build toilets, cheap loans and even cooking gas, which is one of Prime Minister modis style project. Subsidies have now ended, but the Gas Connection has transformed sargas life. And she says this will be a key factor when she decides her vote. Translation i save a lot of time and cooking the gas is very expensive now, so i refill once in two months, but it is still helpful. More women are out voting, but not as many are seen in the workforce. Just a third of working age indian women are formally employed. I think theres a lot that can be done by employers to reduce the barriers that women face in accessing work and also think of more ways of creating work. Thats the real reason why a Labour Force Participation rate is low and therefore an Election Promise is not going to be able to solve that. Cutting to the chase are those Self Employed who want more than just the welfare schemes. Translation bank loans and the government scheme need a lot of paperwork. Cant it be made simpler . But politicians come during elections and then forget us. Thats an ask women increasingly have, to be equal partners, notjust in the electorate, but also in the nations economy. Archana shukla, bbc news, karnataka. Lets get some of the days other news now. Microsofts chief executive, satya nadella, is on the final stop of his trip to southeast asia. He is in malaysia, where he announced a 2. 2 billion ai and cloud investment in the country. Mr nadella was in indonesia and thailand earlier this week. He met officials and businesses and announced investments in al that the Technology Giant will be making in the region. Johnson johnson has outlined a new settlement to resolve nearly all of the lawsuits it faces over allegations that its baby powder and other talc products cause cancer. Over the next 25 year, j j will pay roughly 6. 5 billion to former customers with Ovarian Cancer claims. Whilst the pharmaceutical giant still maintains its talc powder does not cause cancer, the company is looking to put an end to this costly legal battle. Around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. Lets talk about the japanese currency the yen. Its been hitting the lowest level in 34 years but its surged against the us dollar in early asian hours. Joining me now from our Asia Business hub is our resident � yen geek� , mariko oi. I hope you do not get upset by that but that is out nickname for you. So, did the authorities intervene . Are men, can ijust say, i am feeling the love. I did not have to ask, your producer asked me to talk about the ns0 im feeling very happy. Again intervention is not something that would admit the lust sommer intervened it took them almost six months to confirm it. Many traders think that they did and that is because they did and that is because the japanese yen strength and shoving to about 153 from 157 that it shoving to about 153 from 157 Thatitis Shoving to about 153 from 157 that it is now weakening once again. Several days ago, across again. Several days ago, across a 150 monks since 1997 maybe thatis a 150 monks since 1997 maybe that is a line in the sand. Mark. The reason it has been weakening against the us dollar is a big difference in the cost of borrowing between the us and japan. Ourviewers of borrowing between the us and japan. Our viewers might remember that japan japan. Our viewers might remember thatjapan and that it negative rates policy back in march but of course the cost of borrowing there is still pretty much close to zero while the fed has aggressively been raising rates since the end of the pandemic and of course, higher rates tend to attract Foreign Investment and increasing demand and value of the currency. Todays never happened while the us market was close and just after that Federal Reserve meeting that you talked about and that, when the dollar was already weakening slightly butjust weakening slightly but just like weakening slightly butjust like previous interventions, if they did indeed intervene if thatis, they did indeed intervene if that is, they cost a lot of money and the impact does not last for a very long time so we will see forget the confirmation but i do not think we will get that today. Qm. We will get that today. 0k, alwa s we will get that today. 0k, always a we will get that today. 0k, always a pleasure. We will get that today. 0k, always a pleasure. Thank. We will get that today. Ok, always a pleasure. Thank you very much for that. Ecommerce firm ebay has forecast Second Quarter revenue below wall street estimates, as demand cools for its key product categories, like collectors items and auto parts. Shares were down 5 in extended trading. The California Based Company has been under pressure as inflation hit shoppers are becoming increasingly choosy about their online purchases, as well as competition from larger platforms like amazon. Com. Live now to hitha herzog, retail analyst and author. Hello and welcome to the programme. In terms of why this is happening, i thought that ebay was in a very specialised, unique spot. Is emmas on really a threat to them . Amazon. Really a threat to them . Amazon really a threat to them . Amazon. ,. ,. , amazon. About ten years ago it was in a specialised amazon. About ten years ago it was in a specialised spot amazon. About ten years ago it was in a specialised spot but. Was in a specialised spot but now it is not. Now it is a place we have competition from amazon, walmart and you have so many other different resale sites where people can buy use goods and collectables, Including Tiktok which is on the rise and you are seeing this Live Streaming shopping happening that is taking market share away from ebay. Does happening that is taking market share away from ebay. Share away from ebay. Does it have any strength share away from ebay. Does it have any strength at share away from ebay. Does it have any strength at the have any strength at the moment . What can do or has it started Doing Anything to try increase figures . We started Doing Anything to try increase figures . Started Doing Anything to try increase figures . We saw that 60 million increase figures . We saw that 60 million new increase figures . We saw that 60 million new buyers increase figures . We saw that 60 million new buyers on increase figures . We saw that| 60 million new buyers on ebay during this quarter so that was a good spot in the earnings for the