Category: recession

World Stocks Hold on to Upbeat Mood, Dollar Stalls

LONDON—World stocks rallied on Tuesday, as traders held on to hope that interest rates will soon peak and come down later this year, even if the latest U.S. jobs data supported the case for a May hike from the Federal Reserve. Those hopes were fanned by an analysis in the International Monetary Fund’s latest World…


Bank Crisis Spawns Credit Crunch: Analysts

In the wake of recent failures in some regional bank, Americans across the board are finding it harder to get credit. Because smaller banks are so critical to small-business and consumer lending, many analysts predict the fallout from the Fed’s campaign to tame inflation will have dire consequences for the economy. “Bank lending peaked in…


Top Economist Sounds Recession Alarms and Warns of Stagflation After Bank Failures

Noted economist Mohamed El-Erian said the U.S. economy is facing higher odds of a recession and stagflation after a series of high-profile bank collapses last month. “The flashing red light resulting from a speed-of-light run on the U.S. banking system, or what economists broadly refer to as financial contagion, is behind us,” the longtime economist…


Bank Lending Plunges by Largest Measure on Record as Credit Crunch Alarm Rings Louder

Lending by U.S. banks has plunged by the biggest amount on record in the final two weeks of March, according to the latest data from the Federal Reserve, prompting analysts to renew warnings of recession and stagflation. The Fed data show that commercial bank lending in the United States fell by $105 billion in the two…


Wall Street Drops as Job Gains Fuel Rate-Hike Worries

U.S. stock indexes fell on Monday on growing concerns that the Federal Reserve will continue to raise interest rates after Friday’s jobs data pointed to a resilient labor market. The tech-heavy Nasdaq led losses among the major indexes after the long weekend, with growth stocks including Apple Inc., Amazon.com Inc., and Microsoft Corp. slipping between…


Asian Shares Higher After Report Shows Resilience in US Jobs

Shares were mostly higher in Asia on Monday after a report Friday showed resilience in the U.S. jobs market. European markets were closed for Easter holidays. Benchmarks rose in Tokyo and Seoul but fell in Shanghai. Markets were closed in Hong Kong and Sydney. U.S. futures were mixed and oil prices climbed. The highly anticipated…


Yen Sinks as Rates Outlook Diverges; New Zealand Dollar Tumbles

TOKYO—The yen sank against major peers on Monday after U.S. payrolls data bolstered the case for further Federal Reserve rate hikes, highlighting a growing disparity with Japan where the central bank continues to pin the benchmark yield near zero. Meanwhile, the risk-sensitive New Zealand and Australian dollars weakened amid heightened U.S.–China tensions over Taiwan, with…


Oil Steadies as Tighter Supply Balances Growth Concerns

LONDON—Oil steadied on Monday, after rising for three straight weeks, as looming supply cuts from Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ producers balanced concern about weakening global growth that may dampen fuel demand. Crude last week jumped more than 6 percent, a third weekly gain, after OPEC+, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and…


Biden’s Economic Optimism Threatened By Sticky Inflation, Credit Shocks

The U.S. economy has made a remarkable comeback from COVID-19, growing by 2.1 percent in 2022 and returning to its pre-pandemic growth track. Since President Joe Biden took office, the economy has recovered more than 12.5 million jobs and the unemployment rate has dropped to a 50-year low. The number of applications for new small…


‘Recession Probabilities Are Going up at This Point’: Larry Summers

Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers believes the probability of the United States entering a recession has spiked, pointing to tightening credit conditions. “Recession probabilities are going up at this point,” Summers said in an interview with Bloomberg. The U.S. economy averaged 345,000 monthly job additions in the first quarter of 2023 while the unemployment rate…