#monetary-policy

#monetary-policy

After strong performance in 2025, the index is showing signs that future gains will depend less on liquidity and more on earnings quality and valuation resilience. "The market has shifted from being liquidity-driven to earnings-sensitive," said Saqib Iqbal, market analyst at Becoin.net. "With multiple rate cuts behind us and macro data softening, Nasdaq performance is now tied to profit growth and cash-flow resilience, rather than just cheap money."

It reflects what businesses tell us they are less confident about hiring staff due to sky-high employment costs and a tidal wave of new employment legislation coming down the track. While there has been some easing of cost pressures - with average earnings including bonuses slowing to 4.7 per cent in the three months to October - labour costs remain a challenge.

Global markets are nearing the year-end with striking contrasts across major asset classes, shaped by shifting rate expectations, geopolitical uncertainty, and uneven economic momentum. Nowhere was this divergence more evident than in the performance of commodities, oil, and global equities. Gold led with a gain of more than 60%, its strongest annual advance in over a decade, while silver outperformed even that, surging nearly 100% over the year. Both precious metals benefited from expectations of global monetary easing, persistent geopolitical tensions,

If November's fickle rates are a sign of what's to come, mortgage rates will likely rise in December. Analysts went into this month with a growing sense that the Federal Reserve would vote to lower the federal funds rate at its Dec. 9-10 meeting. However, any cuts to mortgage rates related to this month's meeting will be relegated to the first week or so of December.

Numerous reasons for the selling on Monday, not the least of which is that the market is still way overbought, and while most expect the Federal Reserve to lower rates by 25 basis points next week, there is still a chance they push the next cut out to January. One thing is for sure: if National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett becomes the next Fed Chairman, we could see rates go much lower in 2026.

Eurozone inflation edged up to 2.2% in November, a slight rise from the 2.1% recorded in October. The headline number continues to hover close to the European Central Bank's 2% target, but the underlying picture remains uneven. For the wider eurozone economy, today's data suggests that the disinflation trend is intact but still fragile. Growth across the bloc remains modest, with forecasts for next year centred near 1.2%.

If the market doesn't seem sure whether or not to expect a base interest rate cut next month, it's not alone-members of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) themselves may have little clue which way the vote is going to go. In the run-up to this week, the mood was one of disappointment that the FOMC wouldn't deliver a final cut for 2025, an action many analysts had priced in since this summer.

US job growth blew past expectations in September painting a rosy pre-shutdown picture and delivering the largest jobs gain in 5 months. Despite the data already being out of date, this will be the only major jobs release prior to the Fed's end of year meeting. Given the Fed minutes showed hesitancy within the ranks when it comes to a final interest rate cut in 2025, the strength of this jobs report will likely ensure nothing changes.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's October confirmation triggered immediate volatility across Japanese markets. Long-term bond yields reached multi-year highs, the yen fell past the 150-per-dollar threshold, and equity indices climbed to record territory. Her public calls for looser monetary policy clashed with market expectations, forcing some investors to recalibrate their assumptions about the Bank of Japan's next moves. The turbulence reflects deeper pressures reshaping Japan's corporate funding environment.

Bostic has led the Atlanta Fed since June 2017, and he is the first Black and openly gay regional Fed president. His tenure, however, has included scrutiny over personal investments. In October 2022, the Fed reviewed trades Bostic made during blackout periods near policy meetings. He apologized for discrepancies, although no evidence showed he traded on insider information. Bostic has vocalized caution when it comes to rate cuts this year, citing elevated inflation and a softening labor market.

By my assessment, the labor market is largely in balance, the economy shows continued momentum, and inflation remains too high, the statement read in part. I view the stance of policy as only modestly restrictive. In this context, I judged it appropriate to maintain the policy rate at this week's meeting. The federal funds rate is currently at a range of 3.75% to 4%, its lowest level in three years.

EUR/USD is hovering around 1.1620, rebounding slightly from recent lows as expectations for a Eurozone recovery improve, while the U.S. dollar has paused after a strong rally. However, the euro's recovery remains limited due to the wide U.S.-EU interest rate gap and the likelihood that the Federal Reserve will maintain a cautious policy stance, while the ECB leans toward keeping rates steady.

That comes despite widespread optimism over US-China trade negotiations, which signal the potential for a breakthrough ahead of Trump's meeting with Xi later in the week. In Europe, this morning has seen a German Ifo business climate survey that brought an improved headline figure of 88.4, while the expectations metric rose to the highest level since Feb 2022. However, despite optimism over future business conditions, the worsening of current conditions (85.3) highlights a perception of a struggling economy that many hope will get better.