This week’s central bank interest rate decisions came in as expected. The Federal Reserve left rates unchanged – the first time it has opted not to hike since March 2022 – while the European Central Bank increased rates by 0.25%. The ECB maintained its aggressive attitude to tackling inflation, effectively promising another hike next month, but the Fed was a bit more aggressive than expected. US inflation is heading in the right direction but progress is slow and the jobs market remains robust. Fed members indicated that two more hikes are likely this year and Fed chair Jerome Powell signalled that rates will need to remain elevated to avoid a stop/start approach to tackling inflation.
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