The week began with European investors in a risk-off mood. Eurozone government bond yields rose on fresh hawkish comments from several ECB officials, including Lagarde, who emphasized the idea that the ECB could wait several meetings between cuts
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The week ended on a ‘higher for longer’ note, which weighed on assets. US non-farm payrolls for May showed a greater-than-expected job creation and an acceleration in average hourly earnings growth, while euro area compensation per employee also surprised on the upside, sending sovereign yields higher across the board on both sides of the Atlantic.
As expected, the ECB lowered interest rates by 25 bp, taking the depo and refi rates to 3.75% and 4.25%, respectively. As for its next steps, the ECB once again remarked future decisions will be “data-dependent”, noting that the inflation path will not be exempt from surprises.
Investors started the week trading cautiously in a session without major economic events. Central bank officials’ comments, then, took center stage with different FOMC members insisting that the latest inflation readings have not given them enough confidence to start cutting rates at this stage.
Investors traded cautiously in yesterday’s session as they await key economic releases this week, including euro area 1Q GDP (today), which is expected to show the economy grew 0.2% yoy, euro area April inflation (today) expected to stay at 2.4% yoy, and the Fed’s FOMC meeting tomorrow, where markets anticipate no changes to the Fed’s target rate.
At its meeting yesterday, the Federal Reserve kept interest rates on hold at 5.25-5.50%, as expected, and the Fed's policy statement kept its economic assessment and policy guidance without changes. Powell signaled the next move is unlikely to be an interest rate hike as the Fed is still leaning towards an eventual cut, despite needing greater confidence to do so.
In yesterday's session investors continued to assess the Fed's next move regarding interest rates following Wednesday's FOMC meeting. In particular, markets seem to have taken Powell's downplay of the possibility of hiking rates given the recent inflation figures as a confirmation that the next move will be a cut.
In the first session of the week, investors weighed somewhat better-then-expected economic data releases in the euro area with dovish comments from central bank officials on both sides of the Atlantic. On the latter, Richmond Fed president Thomas Barkin said that current interest rates are sufficient to bring inflation back to target.
In yesterday’s session, investors traded cautiously in absence of key macroeconomic data releases. Despite the delivery of some hawkish comments from ECB and US Federal Reserve officials, yields on sovereign bonds edged down on both sides of the Atlantic.
In another session without major macroeconomic references, monetary policy took center stage. The Riksbank decided to reduce its official interest rate by 25 bp to 3.75%, the first cut since 2016, and ECB and Fed officials commented on their respective economic and monetary policy outlooks.
In yesterday’s session, investors paid attention to economic data in the US pointing to a further cool down in the labor market and to the BoE monetary policy meeting, where interest rates were kept unchanged at 5.25%, as expected.
Investors ended the week on a cautious note following a weaker-than-expected consumer confidence index in the US, combined with higher short-term inflation expectations at 3.5%, and hawkish remarks from certain Fed officials. Meanwhile, comments from ECB's Elderson once more pointed to a 25 bp cut in June.
In yesterday’s session investors traded cautiously ahead of tomorrow’s release of US April inflation data, which will be key for the Federal Reserve’s policy decisions. In this context, sovereign bond yields were mostly unchanged on both sides of the Atlantic, while equities were flat in the US and modestly lower in the euro area.
uIn yesterday's session, investors weighed a higher-than-expected US Producer's Price Index for April and comments from Fed chair Jerome Powell, who remarked it is unlikely that the Fed will need to raise interest rates any further, despite having lower confidence that the 2% inflation target will be achieved soon.
Yesterday’s session was filled with macro data releases. US CPI cooled from 3.5% yoy in March to 3.4% in April (+0.3% m/m), as expected by consensus, and the core index dropped from 3.8% yoy to 3.6% (+0.3% m/m), suggesting inflation resumed its downward trend. US April retail sales were unchanged from the previous month vs +0.4% expected.
Sentiment in sovereign bond markets during yesterday's session turned more positive following the revision of US GDP Q1, which showed the economy grew somewhat less than previously estimated (0.33% vs 0.42% q/q), giving the Federal Reserve more room to lower interest rates this year. Yields on sovereign bonds fell across the board.
Investors traded cautiously ahead of key inflation data released later this week. Meanwhile, this month’s Conference Board consumer index in the US rose amid optimism about the labor market. The ECB’s consumer expectations survey showed 1-year and 5-year inflation expectations edged down 0.1 pp each to 2.9% and 2.4%, respectively.
In yesterday’s session, investors traded on a generalized risk-off sentiment following slightly higher-than-expected inflation in Germany during May: 2.8% yoy vs. 2.7% anticipated, up from 2.4% last month. Hawkish comments from central bank officials from the day before also continued to weigh on overall sentiment.
Yesterday’s session saw increased risk appetite in the euro area following dovish comments from the ECB’s Villeroy, who did not rule out two consecutive interest rate cuts in June and July and sees ample space to lower rates from the current 4% policy level. He also remarked that the Fed’s policy should not affect the ECB’s.
The week finished off with a session without any significant movements as inflation figures released on Friday largely aligned with expectations. The US PCE deflator for April came in at 2.7% yoy, as expected. Euro area inflation rose to 2.6% yoy in May, just above the 2.5% expected, although the monthly variation recorded the expected 0.3%.