And here is the sign-off in Yellen’s speech:
To conclude, standard empirical analyses support the FOMC’s outlook that, with gradual adjustments in monetary policy, inflation will stabilize at around the FOMC’s 2 percent objective over the next few years, accompanied by some further strengthening in labor market conditions. But the outlook is uncertain, reflecting, among other things, the inherent imprecision in our estimates of labor utilization, inflation expectations, and other factors. As a result, we will need to carefully monitor the incoming data and, as warranted, adjust our assessments of the outlook and the appropriate stance of monetary policy. But in making these adjustments, our longer-run objectives will remain unchanged--to promote maximum employment and 2 percent inflation.
On that note, it’s time to close for the day. Thanks for all your comments, and we’ll be back tomorrow.
Here are Yellen’s quotes on the pace of interest rate changes:
How should policy be formulated in the face of such significant uncertainties? In my view, it strengthens the case for a gradual pace of adjustments. Moving too quickly risks overadjusting policy to head off projected developments that may not come to pass. A gradual approach is particularly appropriate in light of subdued inflation and a low neutral real interest rate, which imply that the FOMC will have only limited scope to cut the federal funds rate should the economy be hit with an adverse shock.
But we should also be wary of moving too gradually. Job gains continue to run well ahead of the longer-run pace we estimate would be sufficient, on average, to provide jobs for new entrants to the labor force. Thus, without further modest increases in the federal funds rate over time, there is a risk that the labor market could eventually become overheated, potentially creating an inflationary problem down the road that might be difficult to overcome without triggering a recession. Persistently easy monetary policy might also eventually lead to increased leverage and other developments, with adverse implications for financial stability. For these reasons, and given that monetary policy affects economic activity and inflation with a substantial lag, it would be imprudent to keep monetary policy on hold until inflation is back to 2 percent.
After last week’s Fed meeting, Yellen admitted the central bank did not really understand why inflation had not returned to target. In her Ohio speech, she says:
Key among current uncertainties are the forces driving inflation, which has remained low in recent years despite substantial improvement in labor market conditions. ...This low inflation likely reflects factors whose influence should fade over time. But .. many uncertainties attend this assessment, and downward pressures on inflation could prove to be unexpectedly persistent.
My colleagues and I may have misjudged the strength of the labor market, the degree to which longer-run inflation expectations are consistent with our inflation objective, or even the fundamental forces driving inflation. In interpreting incoming data, we will need to stay alert to these possibilities and, in light of incoming information, adjust our views about inflation, the overall economy, and the stance of monetary policy best suited to promoting maximum employment and price stability.
Updated
Yellen’s comments have pushed the US dollar index to its highest level since August 31, as investors bet another rise is coming.
Yellen’s speech can be seen here.
Yellen hints at further US rate rises
US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen has hinted at further rate rises, prompting renewed suggestions a December move is on the cards.
Last week’s Fed meeting seemed to indicate as much, and in a speech in Ohio Yellen said it would be imprudent to leave rates on hold until inflation reached 2%. But she added that the current uncertainties strengthened the case for gradual rate rises, although the Fed had to be careful not to move too gradually.
YELLEN : says fed should be wary of moving too gradually
— IOTAF (@iotafmarkets) September 26, 2017
Hawkish tone from Janet Yellen right now points to a December hike, according to ING's James Knightley.#FED
— ING Economics (@ING_Economics) September 26, 2017
Updated
The risk of a stock market fall seems to be growing, reckons Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at Forex.com:
After Monday’s sell-off, Wall Street opened sharply higher as downbeat tech names found support on “bargain” hunting and amid short-side profit-taking. However, the gains appeared to be short-lived as at the time of this writing, the major indices were coming off their best levels again. I still think a major correction could be on the cards soon, possibly in the coming days.
With US stock markets holding near their all-time highs and volatility being suppressed to record low levels, I just can’t help but feel investors are becoming unjustifiably complacent. Valuations have already become overstretched and at some point even the most bullish of market participants will have to accept that. A growing number of analysts agree that the bullish run cannot continue rising at this pace for much longer, at least without a sizeable correction of some sort.
One also has to remember that the number one reason why stocks are where they are is because of the unprecedented era of cheap central bank money flooding the financial markets. But with the Federal Reserve set to normalise its balance sheet, monetary conditions are going to tighten in the US. While the Bank of Japan will pick up the slack, a growing number of other central banks are turning or have already turned hawkish. The Bank of Canada has already started raising interest rates, while the Bank of England is set to do so in the coming months. The European Central Bank will likely announce the start of its own QE tapering soon.
Mixed day for European markets
Investors remained cautious, in the wake of the continuing tensions between the US and North Korea and the outcome of the German election. So European markets ended the day little moved, while in the US, Wall Street lost some of its early gains but so far has remained in positive territory.
The dollar recovered but the euro remained weak, while oil slipped back from its 26 month highs as profit takers moved in. The final scores showed:
- The FTSE 100 finished down 15.55 points or 0.21% at 7285.74
- Germany’s Dax edged up 0.08% to 12,605.20
- France’s Cac climbed 0.03% to 5268.76
- Italy’s FTSE MIB was 0.18% better at 22,430.65
- Spain’s Ibex ended down 0.26% at 10,189.6
- In Greece, the Athens market dipped 0.29% to 740.37
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is currently up just 9 points or 0.04%.
The pound remains ahead against the euro but lower against the dollar. Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex, said:
The euro continued to hog the limelight this Tuesday, as investors chew over the various German, French and Spanish issues facing the Eurozone.
Down half a percent against the dollar, the euro is now sitting at a fresh month low of around $1.178. Against sterling it is doing a tiny bit better; though the euro’s still at an effective 2 month low, it has halved its losses to 0.2%, forcing the pound back below €1.14.
That’s because sterling has been softened up by former MPC member David Blanchflower’s warning [in the Guardian] that there is ‘absolutely no basis’ for a rate hike in November, a comment that also dragged cable lower by 0.4% fall. All this was further complicated by the hawkish signals sent out by New York Fed President William Dudley, who claimed the rate hike obstacles facing the Fed are ‘fading’...
Still to come this Tuesday is a speech from Janet Yellen, tantalisingly titled ‘Inflation, Uncertainty and Monetary Policy’. That’s potentially attention-grabbing stuff for investors – even if these kinds of talks can end up providing less insight than hoped for – with the dollar looking to extend today’s gains with a few juicy hawkish morsels.
Oil prices have fallen from their highs after profit takers moved in.
Brent crude had risen to more than $59 a barrel, its highest level since July 2015, on a combination of growing demand, Opec production cuts and Turkey’s threat to shut the pipeline that runs from Northern Iraq through Turkey to the port of Ceyhan.
But it has slipped back just over 1% to $58.39 as investors decided to cash in some of their gains.
US consumer confidence dips in September
American consumers were less confident in September than the previous month, partly due to the impact of the recent hurricanes.
The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index came in at 119.8 this month, below the expected level of 120. It was also below August’s figure of 120.4, itself revised down from 122.9. Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at the board, said:
Consumer confidence decreased slightly in September after a marginal improvement in August. Confidence in Texas and Florida, however, decreased considerably, as these two states were the most severely impacted by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. Despite the slight downtick in confidence, consumers’ assessment of current conditions remains quite favorable and their expectations for the short-term suggest the economy will continue expanding at its current pace.
Updated
Wall Street opens higher
US markets have moved ahead at the start of trading, as technology stocks recovered from Monday’s falls.
But investors remained nervous amid the continuing tensions between North Korea and the US. So the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 50 points or 0.23% while the S&P 500 opened 0.16% higher and the Nasdaq Composite 0.37%.
Back with oil, and the latest surge may not continued but the market may now be better balanced, says Andrew Kenningham at Capital Economics:
The latest rise in oil prices reflects concerns about Kurdish supply and hopes for another extension of OPEC’s output cuts, neither of which may have a lasting influence on prices. But the oil market has become better balanced over the past year, suggesting that prices should remain fairly stable...
There are several reasons for the recent rise in prices. Most significantly, the underlying demand and supply for oil have been coming into balance over the past year or so. There has been a steady increase in demand as global growth has picked up. And the increase in supply has been constrained by the OPEC-led production cuts, for which compliance has continued to be surprisingly good.
More recently, leading OPEC members have hinted that they may extend their production cuts of 1.8 million bpd beyond March 2018. This in turn is partly a response to oil stocks not dropping back as rapidly as OPEC members had hoped, due to a surge in oil production by Nigeria, Libya and the US.
And prices jumped in the past day or so due to yesterday’s unofficial referendum on independence in the Kurdish region of Iraq and Turkey’s threat to close the pipeline for Kurdish oil exports. Iraq’s Kurdish region produces around 650,000 bpd, the bulk of which goes through Turkey.
We suspect that the latest surge in oil prices marks the end of an upward trend. Admittedly, some kind of deal to extend the OPEC cuts is now likely, but it is not a done deal as there are several obstacles to be overcome...And Turkey is unlikely to block Kurdish oil exports unless tensions in the region escalate dramatically.
Looking further ahead, it seems likely that oil prices will be fairly stable in the coming years. Not only are global demand and supply now better balanced, but several “automatic stabilisers” should take effect. A significant increase in prices would lead to higher shale production and weaker OPEC compliance, and a significant decrease may well prompt OPEC to reinforce its agreement to restrict supply. Our forecast remains for Brent crude to end this year and next at $57pb and $55pb respectively.
Over in the US, the boss of credit reporting agency Equifax is leaving after a data breach which exposed personal data of 143m Americans.
Richard Smith is stepping down as chief executive after 12 years in the top job. The company’s management had come under fire for lax security and its response to the hacking, which took place in May.
Updated
Over in Greece, bank shares have suffered an alarming plunge, reports Helena Smith in Athens.
Shares have been sliding since the IMF announced that it wanted to conduct a bank asset review as part of a third bailout compliance review with Greece.
The prospect of multiple stress tests would further highlight Greek lenders’ huge non-performing loan problem.
This fear was reinforced yesterday when European Central Bank president Mario Draghi hinted that the Single Supervisory Mechanism may front-load stress tests for Greek banks, once again raising the prospect that banks would need more capital.
Shares have fallen further on news that banks will float fresh plans to reduce NPLs early next month.
Shares in Alpha Bank, Attica Bank and Piraeus Bank have all tumbled by at least 10%, while National Bank of Greece has lost over 6%.
Updated
The spectre of shrinkflation is stalking through the UK economy again today - and this time Jaffa Cakes are the victims.
Manufacturer McVities is facing a revolt after reducing the number of Jaffa Cakes in each pack from 12 to just 10. Fans of the orange-centred snack are outraged.....
Shocking news. Why would you ever need LESS Jaffa cakes?? https://t.co/04OqV03Shf
— Angela Minto (@angelahpjc) September 26, 2017
McVities are trying to calm the storm (which the BBC have seen fit to dub ‘Jaffa Quake’...), insisting that wholesale prices have also been cut.
A spokesperson also insists that the firm haven’t done a Toblerone and messed around with the sizing, saying:
“There is no change in the size, shape or weight of individual cakes in the McVitie’s Jaffa Cake range.”
But, there are reports that some shops are selling the new downsized Jaffa Cakes at the old price! It’s turning into the biggest Jaffa Cake row since the British taxman tried to prove they were actually biscuits.
The drop in the pound has driven up the cost of sugar, chocolate and flour for UK producers, so this may not be the last example of shrinkflation. Still, Jaffa Cake fans who can’t cope with less than a dozen in one sitting could always make their own...
The Unite union is urging the UK government to raise its efforts to protect jobs at Bombardier’s Belfast factory.
Assistant general secretary Tony Burke says Bombardier workers are “holding their breath” ahead of today’s ruling on the trade dispute with Boeing.
Burke adds:
“The prime minister and the government need to make it clear to Trump they will not stand back and watch our members jobs and our communities threatened like this.
“Mrs May needs to stand up for our members in the aerospace industry and for decent jobs and for manufacturing in the U.K.”
More here:
Bombardier workers await US court ruling
Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire is currently meeting the Unite union in Belfast to hear their fears over a legal ruling in the United States that could put thousands of jobs in peril at the Bombardier aerospace factory in the east of the city.
Unite and the 4,000 plus workforce at the East Belfast plant are waiting anxiously for news on a ruling in the United States over claims by rival plane-maker Boeing that Bombardier received anti-competitive state support in Canada.
Boeing’s legal action, which the US Department of Commerce and US International Trade Commission will adjudicate on later on Tuesday, relates to Bombardier winning a contract to make the wings for Delta Airlines C-Series aircraft.
The wings are constructed in Bombardier’s Belfast base.
Unite told The Guardian the union will remind Secretary of State Brokenshire that the UK government has extensive contracts with Boeing in particular for purchasing military aircraft from the American aerospace giant.
The union wants the Cabinet in London to apply greater pressure on Boeing to end its legal action against its rival. Boeing has argued that a £750 million support grant to Bombardier from the Quebec regional government in Canada two years ago that rescued the company from bankruptcy breaks US anti-competition laws and is tantamount to illegal state support for their rival.
Brexit dashboard: Pound stronger, but wage squeeze continues
The Guardian’s latest Brexit dashboard has just been launched, showing how the UK economy is faring since last June’s EU referendum.
This month, the dashboard shows that the pound has recovered to its highest levels since the vote, but that hasn’t stopped inflation hitting four-year highs.
Here’s the full piece:
So with real wages still falling, former Bank of England policymaker David Blanchflower argues that this is no time to raise borrowing costs.
Bank warned not to raise interest rates amid squeeze on households https://t.co/Xd1LdhInkB
— The Guardian (@guardian) September 26, 2017
The euro has fallen sharply this week against the Swiss franc, as well as the US dollar and the pound.
Piotr Bujak, chief economist at PKO Bank Polski, has tweeted the details:
Outcome of German elections (deeper European integration in doubt) and risk-off related to NKorea drive down #EURUSD and #EURCHF. pic.twitter.com/ptEzEXm2z4
— Piotr Bujak (@pbujak) September 26, 2017
Catalan independence push also pulls euro down
The euro is also suffering from jitters ahead of Catalan’s independence referendum.
The Catalan government plans to hold a referendum on whether to break away from Spain on Sunday, despite opposition from Spanish authorities.
Madrid is trying to prevent the vote by confiscating millions of ballot papers, after the nation’s constitutional court declared the referendum illegal.
Last week, at least 12 people were arrested when police raided Catalan government offices. The situation is threatening to escalate further; on Monday, Spain’s attorney general refused to rule out the possibility of arresting the Catalan president himself.
The Catalan and Kurdish votes are a double-dose of worry for the markets, as Joshua Mahony, market analyst at IG, explains:
The impending Catalonian referendum is certainly a fear for many within the EU, with the result providing the potential for ongoing conflict in the region. Referendums are clearly a major market driver at the moment, with the Iraqi Kurdistan vote being a potential disruption to the region’s oil supply.
As President Erdogan threatens to cut off the Kurdistan oil pipelines, it comes as no surprise that we have seen another leg higher for Brent, which hit a two-year high yesterday.
Updated
Pound hits 10-week high against struggling euro
The pound has hit a 10-week high against the euro, as worries over the German election continue to drag the single currency down.
Sterling has risen by 0.3% this morning to €1.14 for the first time since 14 July.
This may annoy British holidaymakers who swapped pounds for euros in the summer holidays, as the pound fell during August to just €1.08, an eight year low.
The euro has also dipped against the US dollar, to a one-month low of $1.1822, extending Monday’s selloff.
Investors are selling the euro because they expect it will take Angela Merkel many weeks to hammer out a new coalition (most likely with the Free Democrats and the Greens). The success of the far-right AfD party is also a concern, as it may restrain Merkel from driving closer eurozone integration.
Complicated German coalition talks have put a cap on #euro gains. The single currency is 0.28% weaker against the #dollar.
— Adrienne Murphy (@MurphyAnalyst) September 26, 2017
Ian Ormiston, manager at Old Mutual Global Investors, reckons Merkel has been “diminished”, despite winning a fourth term as chancellor:
We will have protracted coalition talks as the socialist SPD party have indicated that they wish to lead the opposition and so the most likely grouping is centre right CDU/CSU, pro-business FDP and left-leaning Grüne (Green) party. This is likely to bring minor policy shifts at home, and more importantly, slow the momentum towards greater European integration which was building following Emmanuel Macron’s election as president of France.
This will disappoint those that wanted European rebalancing led by more expansionary German fiscal policy and those that hope for an expansion of European structures to cope with the next crisis. For equity markets, we can probably look for more of the same, modest but adequate growth across the region and political pragmatism having little impact on earnings and valuations.
In contrast, the pound is still benefitting from the prospect of a UK interest rate rise soon, perhaps at the Bank of England’s next meeting in early November.
Updated
UK consumer credit slows as savings suffer
Just in: Britons took a break from hammering their credit cards last month, and dipped into their savings instead.
That’s according to new industry data from UK Finance, which suggests households are being squeezed hard by inflation and low wage growth.
The figures show that annual growth in personal deposits with high street banks fell to 2.2% in August, in the weakest month since May 2009.
Consumer borrowing from High Street banks slowed to 1.5% in August, down from 1.9% in July.
Our economics correspondent Richard Partington explains:
The trade body suggested consumers are saving a bit less each month, as opposed to borrowing more, amid a modest decline in the growth of credit card and personal loans. “It seems households are saving a bit less each month, rather than borrowing more, as growth in personal deposits has slowed recently, alongside a slowdown in growth of consumer credit borrowing,” it said.
Annual growth in credit card borrowing was 5% in August, compared to 5.3% in the previous month, while the use of personal loans and overdrafts fell by 1.6% on an annual basis, from a contraction of 1% in the year to July.
The figures may show that recent warnings from the Bank of England against reckless lending have reached lenders’ ears. But the drop in savings growth highlights that households may be ill-prepared for an economic downturn.
UK Finance also reported that 41,807 mortgages were approved in August. That’s higher than the monthly average of 41,133 over the last six months, despite a drop in buy-to-let loans following recent tax changes.
UK Finance’s Senior Economist Mohammad Jamei said:
“Housing market activity is in Goldilocks territory, growing only modestly since the start of the year, though the mix of activity has shifted towards first-time buyers, away from buy-to-let and cash.
“Housing market activity is in Goldilocks territory," says UK Finance. What does that mean? Hot porridge? Lumpy bed?
— simon read (@simonnread) September 26, 2017
We’ve not reached $60 per oil quite yet. Instead, Brent crude price are dipping a little....
Price of #crude #oil#Brent - $58.56 (-0.46/ -0.78%)#WTI - $51.95 (-0.27/ -0.52%)
— crude Oil is Now (@crudeOilNow) September 26, 2017
26 Sep 09:00 UTC (GMT) pic.twitter.com/Eb0XFN79ZP
European stock markets are subdued this morning, after the US and North Korea escalated their war of words last night.
Britain’s FTSE 100 is down around 0.2%, despite a rally among oil producers.
North Korea’s claim that the US has “declared war” has unnerved some investors, and sent shares down on Wall Street last night.
Mike van Dulken of Accendo Markets say:
This has perked up safe haven demand for Gold, bonds, the Yen and Swiss Franc, although relative calm among risk assets suggests many expect the move to again be short-lived.
However, the rally in Oil prices is helping buoy sentiment thanks to a Kurdish referendum that could threaten Iraqi exports, extending a summer Oil rebound.
Energy trading group Trafigura believes the worst is over for the oil market.
Ben Luckock, its co-head of Group Market Risk, told a conference this morning that the era of “lower for longer” oil prices would soon be over.
Luckock argued that rising demand, and tighter supply, would keep prices up.
Oil trader Trafigura heralds end of "lower for longer" crude era https://t.co/q9KVHNoRQY via @danmurtaugh pic.twitter.com/Cft5eoB71o
— Bloomberg Markets (@markets) September 26, 2017
However...there’s an argument that once prices go up, more supply comes onto the market - particularly from US shale producers. So we shall see....
Why Turkey is angry over Kurdish independence push
Yesterday’s Kurdish independence referendum took place without the support of the Iraq’s government in Baghdad.
But that didn’t prevent widespread celebrations on the streets of Erbil, capital city of Kurdistan region in Iraq, last night as the polls closed.
People chanted “Bye bye Iraq! Bye bye Iraq”, set off fireworks and took to the streets in cars festooned with Kurdish flags.
There are more than 30 million Kurds, living in Iraq, Syria, Iran and Turkey.
So, last night’s referendum has been criticised by Iraq’s neighbours, who fear that their own Kurdish populations will also push harder for their own state.
Turkey has a large Kurdish population, and its military forces have been clashing with the militant PKK group, which demands Kurdish autonomy in Turkey, for many years (Ankara insists that the PKK are a terrorist operation, but its leader was recently seen being protected by US soldiers, as his troops fight against ISIS.....)
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan fears that the Kurdish referendum will encourage his own Kurdish population to push for independence. That’s why he’s threatening to take economic, trade and security counter-measures, including possibly shutting the pipeline that runs from Northern Iraq through Turkey to the port of Ceyhan.
Erdoğan said yesterday that:
“After this, let’s see through which channels the northern Iraqi regional government will send its oil, or where it will sell it.
We have the tap. The moment we close the tap, then it’s done.”
Bloomberg’s Fercan Yalinkilic has tweeted a handy chart showing how the path of the pipeline:
#Oil jumps after President Erdogan indicates shutting down Ceyhan-Kirkuk pipeline a possibility. https://t.co/QJVsPQYZAL pic.twitter.com/AVKxhSpgUQ
— Fercan Yalinkilic (@FercanY) September 26, 2017
Updated
A former Saudi energy ministry official has predicted that the oil price will soon hit $60 per barrel.
Ibrahim al-Muhanna told an audience in Washington last night that Opec’s agreement to restrict supplies will keep prices rising.
Al-Munhanna, who recently retired as an advisor to the Saudi Energy Ministry, argued:
“With the current arrangement and commitment of major producers, and their willingness to adjust and extend the agreement, I believe as commercial oil stocks continue to contract, oil prices will gradually increase.
We even might hit $60 per barrel before the end of this year or the beginning of next year.”
Signs that Opec members are enforcing their recent deal to cut production have also helped to drive the oil price up.
Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at Forex.com, explains:
Oil prices have been going higher in recent weeks due first and foremost to evidence that OPEC and Russia’s efforts to reduce the global supply glut was showing positive results and that the group was somewhat surprisingly sticking to their agreement.
Indeed, according to the OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo, the cartel and its partners had implemented more than 100% of their agreed cuts in August. Talks that the production cuts could be extended has been providing further confidence to oil investors that the rally could be sustained.
Introduction: Oil prices rise as Turkey threatens pipeline
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business.
Motorists face the prospect of higher prices at the pump after the price of oil hit its highest level in over two years.
Brent crude has jumped over $59 per barrel, its highest level since July 2015, as concern grows over potential supply problems.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan sparked the rally, after threatening to cut off a pipeline that carries oil from northern Iraq to the outside world.
Erdogan is deeply unhappy that the Kurdistan Regional Government held a referendum on independence yesterday, as part of their drive to break away from the rest of Iraq.
That pipeline, which runs from Iraq’s oilfields to the Turkish port of Ceyhan, usually pumps between 500,000 and 600,000 barrels per day (Reuters reports), so any disruption could have a significant effect on the market.
Oil has already been rising, as US refineries have been hit by the hurricane season - Turkey’s threats have given it another lift, putting Brent crude within sight of the $60 per barrel mark.
US crude oil is also up, at $52 per barrel.
Central bankers will be watching closely, as energy prices have a significant impact on inflation. A higher oil price could easily drive Britain’s cost of living yet higher, intensifying pressure on the Bank of England to raise interest rates.
Kit Juckes of French bank Societe Generale says:
The standout trend in markets right now is oil, moving higher pretty steadily....
All of this makes OPEC’s life a little bit easier, but it’s also significant at a wider level.
Elsewhere in the markets, traders will be poised for developments following Germany’s general election, as Angela Merkel tries to form a new coalition government.
The euro has a bad day yesterday, after the far-right AfD party won seats, as Reuters’ Jamie McGeever shows:
German election result contributes to euro's biggest loss of the year yesterday, -0.9% to $1.1850. pic.twitter.com/ny2StPoM7N
— Jamie McGeever (@ReutersJamie) September 26, 2017
On the corporate side, aerospace firm Bombardier will discover if it will suffer financial penalties over a trade dispute with its rival Boeing.
Bombardier is accused of selling its C-Series airliners at artificially low prices. The wings for the plane are made in Northern Ireland, so the US trade court’s initial ruling could affect thousands of jobs.
We’ll also be watching out for new housing figures from Britain and America through the day....
The agenda
- 9.30am BST: The British Bankers Association’s survey of UK mortgage approvals.
- 2pm BST: S&P/Case-Shiller index of US house prices.
- 3pm BST: US consumer confidence and home sales figures
- 5.45pm BST: Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen gives a speech on “Inflation, Uncertainty, and Monetary Policy”
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