Analysis: Currencies

Hedge funds jump into volatile January to reap returns

Hedge funds posted positive returns in January thanks to ripples of market volatility stemming from U.S. military action in Venezuela, questions around the independence of the Federal Reserve and a...

US services sector treads water in January as new orders slow

The U.S. services sector held steady in January, but businesses paid more for inputs, suggesting that services inflation could pick up after being on a slowing trend in recent months. ...

US services sector steady in January,  supply constraints from AI data centers feared

The U.S. services sector held steady in January, with businesses increasingly worried about supply constraints tied to a data center construction boom powering artificial intelligence. ...

Indian rupee forecast to remain weak, rangebound, despite US-India trade deal

The Indian rupee is forecast to remain in a narrow range over the next few months, having clawed back only a fraction of the losses it has racked up against the dollar since early 2025, a Reuters poll...

Russian services sector sees strongest growth in a year, VAT hike fuels inflation

Russia's services sector expanded at its fastest pace in a year in January, buoyed by stronger demand and a rise in new orders, an S&P Global survey showed on Wednesday. The S&P Global...

Euro zone faces inflation hurdle before ECB

A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Rae Wee A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Rae Wee Euro zone preliminary inflation data...

Ultra-low bond spread unity still out of reach for euro area

Euro zone sovereign bond yield spreads are at their lowest since Lehman Brothers collapsed in 2008, but investors say steeper falls will be difficult without deeper reforms, as volatile geopolitics...

BOJ won't come to the rescue of a Takaichi-driven bond rout

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi should not count on the Bank of Japan's help in taming sharp bond yield rises given the huge cost of intervention, including the significant risk of igniting unwelcome...

Yen heads for fourth straight day of losses ahead of Japan's elections

The dollar rose against the yen on Wednesday, pushing the Japanese currency towards its fourth consecutive daily decline ahead of elections expected to boost Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's fiscal and...

Democratic senators seek delay in nomination proceedings of Warsh for Fed chair

The Democratic members of the Senate Banking committee on Tuesday asked Republican committee chair Senator Tim Scott to delay the nomination proceedings for former Federal Reserve governor Kevin...

Fed Governor Miran quits White House job

Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran resigned on Tuesday from his position as chair of the White House's Council of Economic Advisers, fulfilling a pledge he made to the Senate as his assignment at...

Investors ramp up bets on steeper yield curve under Warsh-led Fed

Investors are ramping up bets on higher long-dated Treasury yields and a steeper yield curve as incoming Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh is expected to press for interest rate cuts while shrinking...

Fed's Barkin says hard to know how long higher productivity will last

Rising productivity is helping businesses ease cost pressures, aiding the U.S. central bank's inflation fight, but it is difficult to predict if it will persist and, as a result, hard to know how...

Sterling steady as traders eye Bank of England decision

The pound was little changed on Tuesday as a light economic calendar made for steady trading ahead of the Bank of England's interest rate decision on Thursday. Sterling was last trading...

Euro zone banks tightening access to business credit, ECB survey shows

Euro zone banks tightened access to corporate credit last quarter and expect to see further tightening ahead due to widespread economic uncertainty, partly related to trade policies, the European...

Russia's 2026 GDP growth is seen at 1-1.3%, deputy PM Novak says

Russia's gross domestic product is expected to grow by 1 to 1.3% in 2026, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Tuesday. For 2025, growth was estimated at 1% and the jobless...

India to ramp up purchases of US oil, arms, aircraft; open some farm access

India has agreed to buy petroleum, defence goods, and aircraft from the U.S., while partly opening up its highly-guarded agriculture sector under a trade deal, according to a government official, as...

Japan PM's idle yen comments send finance bureaucrats scrambling

Just as Japan was finally gaining ground in its long, hard fight to stop sharp currency falls, a fresh challenge has emerged from its own prime minister, whose off-the-cuff comments tell a different...

Top consulting firms test boundaries with China workarounds

Faced with a fraught geopolitical environment, global consultancies are turning to riskier ways to do business in China that some industry and legal experts say test the boundaries of Western...