HONG KONG, China — Equity traders struggled to get a recent rally back on course Thursday following a tepid lead from Wall Street, but record performance in Europe highlighted optimism that central banks were on course to cut interest rates.
London chalked up another all-time high ahead of a Bank of En gland meeting many hope will see officials flag their intention to begin normalising monetary policy in the summer.
That comes after Sweden’s central bank reduced borrowing costs for the first time in eight year s and cited more were in the pipeline.
The Riksbank decision was announced nearly two months after the Swiss National Bank became the first major Western central bank to move since a global tightening campaign to fight inflation fuelled by Covid recovery and the Ukraine war.
Traders hoping for Federal Reserve cuts have been on a rollercoaster ride this year as a string of forecast-beating inflation readings have forced them to chip away at their expectations.
The consensus is now about two cuts by January, against six estimated at the start of 2024.
Several Fed decision-makers have also looked to temper expectations, with the latest being Boston Fed president Susan Collins, who said rates would likely need to stay at their two-decade highs for longer to bring prices under con trol.
Her comments were not dissimilar to those made by her Minneapolis counterpart Neel Kashkari the d ay before.
Still, a healthy run of corporate results, soothing comments from Fed boss Jerome Powell over the prospect of a rate hike and a sharp miss on US jobs last month have put a skip in traders’ step in the past week.
And analysts are still broadly positive for the outlook on equities.
“Despite the lack of good news on inflation, there is a silver lining for patient investors,” said Mark Hackett of Nationwide.
“As the Federal Reserve extends the timeline for interest rate cuts, historical data shows that longer Fed pauses often correlate with better equity returns. This should give investors reasons to be optimistic.”
After London’s record, and gains in Paris and Frankfurt were followed by a mixed performance in New York, Asia struggled.
Hong Kong resumed its upward momentum, having fallen for two days after a 10-day winning streak, while Shanghai was also in positive territory.
The gains came after data showed Chinese exports beat forecasts slightly while imports surged far more than expected, providing some hope that the world’s number two economy may have bottomed after a long-running slowdown since the lifting of zero-Covid measures.
“We think domestic demand will still be the key driver for growth this year,” said analysts at HSBC. “Ongoing resilience in consumption and policy easing such as for upgrading and for property demand should help put growth on track towards the ‘around five percent’ target this year.”
Bangkok was also up but there were losses in Tokyo, Sydney, Singapore, Seoul, Wellington, Manila, Mumbai and Taipei.
London was flat, Paris dipped and Frankfurt edged up.
Oil prices ticked up for a second day as investors keep tabs on efforts for a ceasefire in the Middle East, even as Israel presses ahead with an assault on Rafah in southern Gaza.
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.3 percent at 38,073.98 (close)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 1.2 percent at 18,537.81 (close)
Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.8 percent at 3,154.32 (close)
London – FTSE 100: FLAT at 8,354.71
Dollar/yen: UP at 155.79 yen from 155.63 yen on Wednesday
Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0733 from $1.0748
Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2476 from $1.2495
Euro/pound: UP at 86.04 from 86.00 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.7 percent at $79.54 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.6 percent at $84.08 per barrel
New York – Dow: UP 0.4 percent at 39,056.39 (close)
MANILA, Philippines — Nakikipagtulungan na ang Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) sa iba’t ibang ahensya ng gobyerno para malaman ang mga tamang batayan sa “automatic adjustment” ng cash grants sa ilalim ng Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).
Ito ang ibinahagi ni Social Welfare spokesperson Irene Dumlao, Huwebes, matapos tumaas ang inflation rate sa 3.8% dala ng mabilis ng paglobo ng presyo ng bilihin lalo ng pagkain at transportasyon.
“I would like to reiterate what DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian said that adjusting the cash grants of 4Ps beneficiaries is not just timely but that it also preserves the value of the grants,” ani Dumlao sa isang pahayag.
“Part of the directive of the President is for the DSWD, NEDA and PSA to come up with a proposal to ensure that the cash grants are responsive to present socio-economic conditions and automatically adjusted even without legislation.”
Ang 4Ps ay isang stratehiya ng gobyerno sa “pagpapababa ng kahirapan” habang namumuhunan aniya sa mga mamamamayan. Meron itong 4.4 milyong benepisyaryong pamilya sa buong Pilipinas.
Sa ilalim nito, binibigyan ng pera ang mga benepisyaryo sa tuwing sumusunod silaa sa mga kondisyones gaya ng pagpapapasok ng anak sa eskwelahan, pagpapa-check up sa kanila sa health centers at pagdalo sa buwanang family development sessions.
Narito ang mga ibinibigay na cash grants ng gobyerno sa mga kwalipikadong pamilya 10 buwan sa isang taon sa bisa ng Republic Act 1130 o 4Ps Act:
Pero dahil sa pagtaas ng presyo ng bilihin, lumiliit din ang tunay na halaga ng pera. Kumokonti kasi ang nabibili ng parehong halaga.
Ngayong 2024 lang nang atasan ni Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ang DSWD, National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) at Philippine Staatistics Authority (PSA) para aralin ang kasalukuyang halaga ng cash assistance na ibinibigay sa mahihirap upang maging mas responsive ito sa economic shocks.
Matagal nang pinupuna ng mga progresibo ang 4Ps program bilang “band-aid solution” o “panandaliang limos” sa kahirapan ng publiko. Aniya, kapos ito at hindi pa rin maihahambing sa benepisyo ng direktang pagbibigay ng trabaho, industriyalisasyon at tunay na reporma sa lupa.