INFLATION

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke rattled financial markets Wednesday afternoon, as the top U.S. central banker hemmed and hawed his way through a tough round of questioning from a cadre of economic reporters.

Strong first-quarter earnings and a slightly more positive view of the U.S. economy by the central bank offset disappointing durable goods numbers for March to boost equities and trim bonds.

The euro hovered near a three-week high and global shares rose on Wednesday ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy meeting, due mainly to signs of good demand for euro zone sovereign debt before a German bond sale, and some strong corporate earnings.

The housing market is seeing hints of stabilization, with February home prices rising for the first time in 10 months, according to a survey on Tuesday, while a measure of consumer confidence last month fell more than expected.

Consumer confidence edged slightly lower in April, while Americans also reined in their inflation expectations after a surge in the previous month, according to a private sector report released on Tuesday.

The housing market is seeing hints of stabilization even as it struggles to gain traction, data showed on Tuesday, as home prices rose for the first time in 10 months in February while sales dropped in March.

It is highly expected that the Bank of Japan will resort to additional monetary easing at its next meeting on April 27 so that the economy could recover from deflation and grow more strongly.

Singapore's inflation rose sharply in March, driven by escalating costs of housing and automobiles, suggesting that the central bank could tighten monetary policy further to prevent overheating, especially in the housing sector.

Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said on Wednesday the central bank is fully committed to continuing powerful monetary easing through various measures, such as keeping interest rates practically at zero and purchasing financial assets until 1 percent inflation is in sight.

Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said on Wednesday the central bank is fully committed to continuing powerful monetary easing through various measures, such as keeping interest rates practically at zero and purchasing financial assets until 1 percent inflation is in sight.

While chances of a third round of U.S. money-printing quantitative easing measures, or QE3, have dimmed, the World Gold Council, or WGC, remains positive on the yellow metal's outlook due to its international appeal and value in hedging against inflation and deflation.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) surprised markets with a 50 basis point cut in the main interest rate, the first policy easing in three years, as focus turned to lifting lending controls and tackling a slowdown in the economy.

The Federal Reserve was neither hawkish nor dovish when it set a formal inflation target, and such a move would make sense even if the U.S. central bank had a single mandate, a top Fed official said on Monday.

South Korea's central bank has lowered the country's growth forecast for 2012 to 3.5 percent on account of the global economic slowdown that has resulted in the weakening of exports.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is expected to ease rates when it announces the annual credit policy on Tuesday, in order to lift constraints on lending and in a response to the continued shortage of liquidity in the banking sector faced with a slow moving economy.

South Korea's central bank on Monday trimmed its forecast for economic growth in Asia's fourth-largest economy this year due to a global downturn and weak domestic demand.

South Korea's central bank said Friday that it is keeping the key interest rate unchanged at 3.25 percent, subsequent to the inflationary pressures witnessed by the country.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore Friday tightened monetary policy in an attempt to alleviate core inflationary pressures and thereby to enhance growth.

Consumer prices rose modestly in March amid signs a spike in gasoline costs was ebbing, but inflation still outpaced workers' earnings and threatened to undermine spending.

A preliminary survey of consumer confidence for April shows the lackluster job creation seen in March is playing into people's pessimism more than economists had expected. But a recent, tiny, decline in gasoline prices, following a dizzying climb at the beginning of the year, is at least making consumers feel better about inflation and hence, expectations for the future.

U.S. stocks rose more than 1 percent on Thursday as lower Italian bond yields eased some euro-zone concerns and rumors about China's strong GDP growth bolstered investors' appetite for risk.