News

For much of the past 17 years the Federal Reserve has been the central player in U.S. economic policy, throwing multi-trillion-dollar safety nets under the financial system, offering nearly a decade of ultra-cheap money, jumping redlines during the COVID-19 pandemic, and delving more into areas like equity and climate change. But that expansive role has now shrunk to one of terse policy statements, a meat-and-potatoes debate over interest rates, a declining stash of bonds, and a growing possibility that Fed Chair Jerome Powell may be remembered both as the man who got the U.S. through the economic crisis triggered by the pandemic and the one who made central banking boring again. Former St. Louis Fed President James Bullard was on the policymaking team that saw the central bank's role expand during the 2007-2009 financial crisis, watched as it mushroomed again during the pandemic and sees it now morphing back into something more normal.

(Bloomberg) -- The dangers were crystal clear. Top economic aides to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had pointed them out to him again and again: Any moves to water down the fiscal-austerity plan in the works will spark a selloff — another selloff — across Brazilian financial markets.Most Read from BloombergRiyadh Metro Partially Opens in Bid to Ease City’s Traffic JamsAs Wars Rage, Cities Face a Dark New Era of Urban DestructionAnd yet, Lula decided he did not care. He ordered his staff to

(Bloomberg) -- Nations failed to agree on a treaty to curb plastic pollution after two years of divisive negotiations, as oil suppliers including Saudi Arabia and Russia blocked attempts to limit production.Most Read from BloombergRiyadh Metro Partially Opens in Bid to Ease City’s Traffic JamsAs Wars Rage, Cities Face a Dark New Era of Urban DestructionAlmost 200 countries joined a week-long United Nations-backed summit in Busan, South Korea, which concluded in the early hours of Monday without

(Bloomberg) -- Inflation in Peru’s capital stayed within the central bank’s target band in November for the eighth straight month, according to data published Sunday. Most Read from BloombergRiyadh Metro Partially Opens in Bid to Ease City’s Traffic JamsIn Traffic-Weary Toronto, a Battle Breaks Out Over Bike LanesAnnual inflation in Lima increased to 2.27%, according to the national statistics agency INEI. On a monthly basis, prices rose 0.09% from October. Peruvian Central Bank President Julio

(Bloomberg) -- The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure accelerated in October, helping explain US central bankers’ more cautious approach to interest-rate cuts.Most Read from BloombergRiyadh Metro Partially Opens in Bid to Ease City’s Traffic JamsIn Traffic-Weary Toronto, a Battle Breaks Out Over Bike LanesTop-line inflation in the euro area also picked up, though price growth excluding food and fuel held steady. European Central Bank officials have signaled a fourth reduction in rates

Brushing snowflakes off her hair, Teagan Hickson walked into a Walmart Supercenter in Fort Wayne, Indiana, with hopes of picking up a few holiday deals on Black Friday. "I'm trying to not spend too much," said Hickson, 43. As retailers reopened U.S. stores after the American Thanksgiving holiday, some locations drew clusters of shoppers.

(Bloomberg) -- Oil drifted lower in thin post-holiday trading on uncertainty about OPEC+’s production plans and the durability of a truce between Israel and Lebanon-based Hezbollah.Most Read from BloombergRiyadh Metro Partially Opens in Bid to Ease City’s Traffic JamsIn Traffic-Weary Toronto, a Battle Breaks Out Over Bike LanesBrent shed 1.3% to settle below $72 a barrel. A cease-fire deal that halted more than a year of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah appeared to be holding, despite both