GBP

The Bank of Japan raised benchmark lending rates and announced plans to cut its monthly bond purchases by half in last night’s meeting, moving closer to unwinding an unconventional monetary policy programme that began in the late nineties. Surprising—but not shocking—market participants, the central bank under Governor Kazuo Ueda lifted the target for the uncollateralised overnight call rate to 0.25 percent, up from the previous zero-to-0.10 percent range, and said it would gradually reduce government bond purchases to around ¥3 trillion a month by early 2026, down from the current ¥6 trillion. With internal Bank forecasts pointing to a self-reinforcing...

Markets are holding steady ahead of a week full of potential volatility landmines: central bankers in Tokyo, Washington and London will deliver rate decisions, four of the ‘magnificent seven’ technology companies – Amazon, Apple, Meta, and Microsoft – will release earnings, the euro area will publish an inflation update, and a critical US non-farm payrolls report will cap things off before the August doldrums set in. The dollar is edging higher, Treasury yields are slumping, and equity futures are setting up for a second day of gains after last week’s steep stock market selloff. Investors remain unwilling to take short...