The Fed is expected to raise interest rates Wednesday by a quarter point, and the pressure is on for Fed Chairman Jerome Powell to sound dovish — but not too dovish. Fed officials are also expected to revisit their fed funds rate forecasts and roll back some of the rate hikes expected in the next several years.
economic growth
India’s Sensex Declines Ahead of Central Bank’s Rate Review
The S&P BSE Sensex declined 0.6 percent, the most in two weeks, to 35,907.31 as of 9:53 a.m. in Mumbai, while the NSE Nifty 50 Index slipped 0.7 percent. Markets across Asia tumbled following the biggest slide on Wall Street since mid-October.
Crude Oil Imports may be Cut as Price Forecast Put at $100 a Barrel
With Brent crude already jumping to an almost four-year high on Monday, that’s exactly the kind of price surge President Donald Trump has been seeking to prevent by pressuring the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to raise production. Yet the cartel and its allies gave mixed signals at a meeting in Algiers on Sunday, ultimately showing little sign they would heed U.S. demands to rapidly push down crude prices.
China’s Economic Growth Remains Robust Amid Strong Retail Sales
Gold Silver Reports (GSR) – China’s Economic Growth Remains Robust Amid Strong Retail Sales — Steady growth offers support for President Xi Jinping’s mission to shore up financial stability, one of Beijing’s top goals along with reducing poverty and curbing pollution. The robust pace of expansion is a tailwind for the global economy which is seen maintaining its solid performance this year, providing needed support in the form of strong demand for China’s exports.