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The German government on Wednesday slashed its 2025 growth forecast for the country's economy, Europe's biggest, to just 0.3% after it shrank for two consecutive years. The new projection is much lower than the government's previous forecast of 1.1% growth, issued in October. Germany has managed no meaningful economic growth in the past four years as it has struggled to deal with major shifts in the global economy and with structural challenges of its own.

(Reuters) -The dollar steadied on Wednesday ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy decision, with investors on edge for hints of how much interest rates might fall this year, while they broadly expect the central bank to keep policy unchanged for now. Expectations that trade policies under President Donald Trump could boost U.S. growth, but also push up inflation, fuelled bets on higher-for-longer interest rates in the lead-up to the inauguration, supporting the dollar. But as the tariff action investors had braced for has yet to materialise, currency markets have been volatile since Trump took office and the dollar has weakened.

(Bloomberg) -- US Treasuries held onto recent gains ahead of the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate decision as traders ratcheted up bullish bets in hope that Chair Jerome Powell will signal a cut in March is firmly on the table.Most Read from BloombergTrump's Federal Funding Pause Threatens State Financials Housing Aid Uncertain After Trump’s Spending Freeze MemoTexas HOA Charged With Discrimination for Banning Section 8 RentersUS Students’ Reading Scores Drop to Worst in More Than 20 YearsNewsom

(Bloomberg) -- Newly appointed Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy ordered a rewrite of more stringent US fuel-economy rules, following through on one of President Donald Trump’s first directives after he retook the White House.Most Read from BloombergTrump's Federal Funding Pause Threatens State Financials NYC Subway’s Most Dangerous Stations Are on Lexington Ave. LineHousing Aid Uncertain After Trump’s Spending Freeze MemoTexas HOA Charged With Discrimination for Banning Section 8 RentersNewso

Wall Street is bracing for a sharp decline in U.S. oil refiners' fourth-quarter profits as fuel demand softened, while seeking clarity on the sector's preparations for President Donald Trump's threatened tariffs on crude imports from Canada and Mexico. U.S. refiners have seen earnings slide from record levels in 2022, when a recovery in demand following the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine drove up fuel prices. That demand has since slowed, and now Trump's promise to set a 25% tariff on oil imports from Canada and Mexico by Feb. 1 could further hit profits by driving up the cost of crude.

The Federal Reserve is expected to hold interest rates steady on Wednesday as it awaits further inflation and jobs data and more clarity on the economic impact of President Donald Trump's policies before deciding whether to cut borrowing costs again. Trump, who has already said interest rates should be lowered regardless while asserting he knows more about the matter than Fed policymakers, has in his first week in office provided a foretaste of the potential disruption ahead. Since being sworn in as president for a second time on Jan. 20, Trump has rolled out dozens of executive orders, including one on Monday that halts some federal spending - an unexpected fiscal shock that could deliver a blow to consumption and growth.

The January Fed meeting might be considered rather pro format, given no one expects a policy change. But there are some interesting and important questions under the surface that investors may get at least some answers to.