Dollar Up, Treasuries Fall On U.S. Economic Expansion
Global equities pared gains, the dollar rallied and Treasuries fell after reports showed the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation rose and the pace of U.S. economic expansion exceeded forecasts. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index trimmed a second weekly increase, after the benchmark fluctuated throughout Friday. The dollar strengthened for a third day versus the yen, while yields on 10-year Treasury notes topped 1.75...
Fast-Food Giants Battling It Out in Latest Price Fight
New York — Another price fight is breaking out among the country’s biggest burger chains, this time with meal combos designed to make people forget about the once ubiquitous dollar menus. The new “bundled offers” show how hungry McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s are to win over deal seekers, and how quickly a popular idea gets copied in the fast-food industry. The latest trend on the value front popped up in late 2015 after Wendy’s...
Forecasts: Dollar to Gain Against Most Peers in 2016
Sydney — The dollar will strengthen against all its Group-of-10 peers except the pound and Canadian currency in the first quarter, while New Zealand’s kiwi will be the worst performer, according to analyst forecasts. The greenback has advanced against eight of its G-10 counterparts since the end of September as the Federal Reserve raised interest rates and futures signal 55 percent odds another increase will take place by April. The...
Europe Makes It Tougher For the Fed To Raise Rates
Europe is going to have zero interest rates for a lot longer, and that is going to make it harder for the United States to stop having them itself. On Thursday, the European Central Bank all-but-announced it’s about to start doing more to keep its nascent recovery from not being one at all. That could mean buying bonds with newly printed money not just until September 2016, like it has said, but well past it. Or it could mean buying...
What the Fed Wants to See For Rate Hike
Washington — So what will it take for the Federal Reserve to finally raise interest rates? The U.S. economy is now in its seventh straight year of expansion. It’s growing at a steady if unexciting 2.2 percent annual rate. Unemployment has sunk from a 10 percent peak to a reassuring 5.1 percent. Auto and home sales have accelerated. Yet on Thursday, Fed officials declined to lift rates from record lows. The decision left some Fed...
