The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday said it expected Chilean economic growth to slow to 5.3 percent next year from 5.8 percent in 2007, but said the economy was well placed to weather external shocks.
Treasury bonds rose on Monday, and yields dropped as investors looked to lock in gains from last week's strong stock market showing.
The turbulence on global financial markets will clearly affect the UK economy and inflation but it is too early to tell by how much, Bank of England hawk Andrew Sentance said on Monday.
This morning, the British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown gave his assurances that stable economic policies would keep inflation down in the medium to long term.
After a hefty cut in interest rates and the dollar's plunge to new record lows against a surging euro, investors will closely watch data for clues on how seriously problems in credit markets are affecting the real economy. An ailing property market and weaker consumer confidence may herald signs that the credit crunch stemming from problems in the subprime mortgage market may be dragging the economy down making more interest rate cuts a near-certainty.
Gold gained on Monday and hovered near a 28-year high after a weak U.S. dollar spurred buying from investors and speculators, who believed the price could rise further as fundamentals supported the metal.
Treasuries ended the week on a more positive note on Friday, a turnaround following a selloff which began on Tuesday when the U.S. Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate to give a boost to the economy, setting off some inflation concerns.
Wall Street will watch next week for more ripples from the Federal Reserve's half-point cut in interest rates, including any deeper drop in the dollar, and any more spikes in the price of gold and oil.
A steep cut in U.S. interest rates should have eased debt worries but inflation in oil and food prices is a concern.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said on Friday that a strong U.S. dollar was in American interests and said he was optimistic the U.S. economy would continue to grow this year.
Gold rose to its highest in nearly three decades on Friday as a struggling U.S. dollar lifted its safe-haven appeal and purchases from speculators helped the metal defy selling pressure.Gold hit a 28-year high in Europe on Friday as the dollar's continued slide to record lows versus the euro raised the metal's appeal to speculative investors.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Thursday the central bank slashed interest rates this week to brace the U.S. economy against damage from financial turmoil but warned the outlook remains uncertain.
The cut in the United States’ interest rates would not stop China’s interest rate hike , and would not create greater difficulties to the country’s inflation, said an expert from Morgan Stanley.
Treasuries slid for the third day Wednesday amid expectations that inflation will continue to increase after the U.S. Federal Reserve’s move to lower interest rates.
Data surfacing on Wednesday indicates that consumer prices posted a rare decline in August, while the housing industry saw construction fall to the slowest pace in 12 years.
Overall inflation in Canada slowed to an eight-month low in August and the core rate targeted by the Bank of Canada also eased, likely comforting the central bank after recent debt market turmoil led it cancel plans to raise interest rates.
U.S. gold futures rose early on Wednesday on strong follow-through buying and inflationary worries, extending gains from Tuesday when gold contracts surged to a 28-year high after the Federal Reserve half-percentage point rate cut.
Stocks rallied for a second day on Wednesday after an aggressive U.S. rate cut soothed concern the U.S. economy would slip into recession, stirring demand for riskier investments and killing demand for safe-haven bonds.
The Fed's "emergency" interest rate cut has reignited concerns that offering cheaper money as a solution to problems rooted in excessive lending and mispriced assets merely stores up problems for the future.
Shares in European banks rose strongly on Wednesday, driven by relief over a half-percentage point cut in U.S. interest rates, even though some analysts say the credit crunch which has battered stocks is far from over.
Consumer prices unexpectedly dipped 0.1 percent last month and new home construction hit a 12-year low, data on Wednesday showed, underlining concerns about the country's economic outlook. August consumer prices were pushed lower by slumping energy costs and posted their first decline since October, the Labor Department said, while core inflation rose as expected.
Global equities rallied on Wednesday after an aggressive U.S. rate cut allayed fears that a credit crunch which has plagued markets could drag the U.S. economy into recession, but the dollar suffered a blow. The dollar struck a 15-year low against a basket of currencies after the Fed rate cut eroded the yield appeal of the U.S. currency. The weakness of the dollar pushed gold prices to 16-month highs.
