Turkey central bank keeps rate on hold despite currency drop

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey’s Central Bank kept its key interest rate on hold at 10.25% on Thursday, despite market expectations for an increase that would help support the currency. The bank surprised last month with a 2 percentage point rate increase, its first hike in two years, as it tried to contain...

Bank of England asks banks on readiness for negative rates

LONDON (AP) — The Bank of England has asked commercial banks whether they are ready for negative interest rates, signaling that the central bank is moving closer to cutting its key interest rate below zero. If the benchmark rate were cut to less than zero, from the current 0.1%, commercial banks would have...

Turkey hikes rates to support currency, fight inflation

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s Central Bank raised its benchmark interest rate by 2 percentage points on Thursday, its first hike in two years to fight inflation and support its falling currency. In a surprise move that helped boost the Turkish currency, the Monetary Policy Committee said it had...

Swedish central bank sees key interest rate at 0 for years

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden’s central bank on Tuesday kept its main interest rate at zero and said it expects it to remain “at this level in the coming years” due to the economic uncertainty created by the virus pandemic. Riksbanken said its policies and low interest rate had supported the...

US stocks fall as market decline extends for third week

Wall Street capped another turbulent week of trading Friday with a broad slide in stocks that left the S&P 500 with its third-straight weekly loss. The S&P 500 fell 1.1%, led once again by a sell-off in technology companies, with Apple, Amazon and Alphabet weighing particularly on the market. Technology...

Asia slightly higher despite Wall Street slump, virus fears

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were slightly higher Friday despite some investor attention shifting again to the uncertainties in global economies amid the coronavirus pandemic, as reflected in the overnight fall on Wall Street. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was little changed but inched up less than 0.1% in...

Asian stocks retreat on lack of new Fed action

Asian stock markets declined Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve indicated its benchmark interest rate will stay close to zero at least through 2023 but announced no additional stimulus plans. Market benchmarks in Shanghai, Tokyo, Seoul and Hong Kong all retreated. Wall Street's benchmark S&P 500 index...

Fed sees rates near zero through 2023, perhaps longer

WASHINGTON (AP) — With the economy still struggling to recover from the pandemic recession, Federal Reserve policymakers signaled Wednesday that their benchmark short-term interest rate will likely remain at zero at least through 2023 and possibly even longer. Fed chair Jerome Powell said at a press...

How major US stock indexes fared Wednesday

Stocks closed lower on Wall Street Wednesday after a brief rally faded in the last hour of trading. Losses by technology companies outweighed gains in banks and elsewhere in the market. The decline snapped a three-day winning streak for the S&P 500, and followed the Federal Reserve’s latest interest...

Federal Reserve to seek inflation over 2%, keeps benchmark interest rate near zero; sees low rates at least through 2023

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve to seek inflation over 2%, keeps benchmark interest rate near zero; sees low rates at least through 2023.