ECONOMY & MARKETS

The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark overnight interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point on Wednesday in an effort to cool the most intense breakout of inflation since the 1980s, with "ongoing increases" in borrowing costs still ahead despite evidence of a slowing economy.

With the Federal Reserve expected to hike its key interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point on Wednesday to battle high inflation, focus will shift to how deeply signs of an economic slowdown have registered with its policymakers.

As investors await another jumbo-sized rate increase from the Federal Reserve, they are taking the temperature of a weeks-long U.S.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Wednesday it would discuss with Bangladesh its loan request after the country became the third in South Asia to seek such support after Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Bangladesh has asked to start talks on a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) but will take it only if conditions are favourable, the finance minister said on Wednesday, adding its macroeconomic conditions were fine.

El Salvador's president announced on Tuesday a plan for a voluntary repurchase offer to holders of bonds maturing between 2023 and 2025.

Argentina's new economy minister told a gathering of investors in the United States on Tuesday she had begun an adjustment to government spending supported by all ruling party factions, one participant told Reuters.

Wall Street shares gained ground on Wednesday after reassuring earnings reports and guidance from big U.S.

Better-than-expected earnings from a raft of U.S. and European companies helped steady global stock markets on Wednesday, cutting through gloom caused by rising interest rates and the threat of an energy crunch due to Russian gas supply cuts.

Better-than-expected results at Microsoft and Google helped steady a nervous mood in stock markets on Wednesday, while bonds and the dollar were on edge ahead of a U.S.

Australian inflation sped to a 21-year high last quarter and is likely to accelerate even further as food and energy costs explode, stoking speculation interest rates will need to more than double to bring the outbreak under control.

The dollar rose modestly against a basket of major currencies on Wednesday as investors braced for the latest policy announcement from the U.S.

The dollar edged further away from recent 20-year highs on Wednesday ahead of the U.S.

The euro nursed losses on Wednesday after its sharpest drop in two weeks, as a cut in Russian gas supply sent energy prices soaring, while the dollar held ground ahead of an expected U.S.

Oil rose by $2 a barrel on Wednesday as a report of lower inventories in the United States and cuts in Russian gas flows to Europe offset concern about weaker demand and a looming U.S.

Oil prices rose in early Asian trade on Wednesday as industry data showed a larger-than-expected drawdown in U.S. crude stockpiles.

The global economy is mired in a serious slowdown, with some key economies at high risk of recession and only sparse meaningful cooling in inflation likely over the coming year, according to Reuters polls of hundreds of economists worldwide.

Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC, one of the world's biggest investors, is bracing for muted investment returns and expects little respite from runaway inflation that has forced central banks around the world to tighten policy.

Bangladesh asked the International Monetary Fund to start talks on a new loan under the creditor's Resilience and Sustainability Trust (RST), which is designed to help countries ensure sustainable growth, said Krishna Srinivasan, director of the IMF's Asia and Pacific Department, in a Tuesday interview.

The European Central Bank (ECB) could potentially issue a negative opinion toward a recently proposed tax on banks in Spain though details were still missing, Bank of Spain Governor Pablo Hernandez de Cos said on Tuesday.

A new issue of International Monetary Fund Special Drawing Rights reserves is among options that could be considered to aid countries struggling with spillovers from the Ukraine war but there are no active discussions on the matter, IMF officials said on Tuesday.

Canadians whose use of home equity lines of credit (HELOC) has climbed recently following a surge in real estate values during the pandemic could be hit by the next central bank interest-rate hike, which should double monthly payments from just a few months ago.

Some global consumers are showing signs of cracking, as shoppers stressed by record inflation stick to buying basics like food, bleach and cheap burgers, while those with bigger bank accounts are snapping up $3,000 Louis Vuitton handbags.

The Biden administration on Tuesday said it will sell an additional 20 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as part of a previous plan to tap the facility to calm oil prices boosted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and as demand recovers from the pandemic.

U.S. consumer confidence dropped to nearly a 1-1/2-year low in July amid persistent worries about higher inflation and rising interest rates, pointing to slower economic growth at the start of the third quarter.

U.S. stocks ended sharply lower Tuesday as a profit warning by Walmart dragged down retail shares and exceptionally weak consumer confidence data also fueled fears about spending.

U.S. stock indexes fell on Tuesday after Walmart's profit warning heightened fears in the retail sector that consumers were cutting back on discretionary spending in the face of decades-high inflation.

French President Emmanuel Macron described the global food crisis as one of Russia's "weapons of war" during a visit to Cameroon on Tuesday, dismissing suggestions Western sanctions were to blame.

Since it began its current round of interest-rate hikes this year, the U.S.