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I think we've all earned a weekend break in the sun after a quite extraordinary week in the markets that saw plenty of central bank action, even from those not scheduled to meet. Stock markets are ending the week on a positive note, not that anyone is getting carried away with today's price action after turbulent trading conditions in recent days. Triple witching may also be a factor in today's moves which is another reason not to get excited. Recessions are increasingly likely as central banks

17-06-2022 09:28 GMT by Craig Erlam

British pound pares post-BoE gains

Pound jumps after BoE rate hike The pound had a wild day on Thursday, trading in a 350-point range. Sterling traded in a 300-point range overnight, with markets not quite sure to make of the BoE's 0.25% rate increase.

17-06-2022 07:21 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Yen falls back down after BoJ balks

The Japanese yen continues to post strong swings this week and is up sharply on Friday. USD/JPY is trading at 134.67 in Europe, up 1.86% on the day. BoJ maintains yield curve control It's been a busy week, with the markets still digesting some dramatic moves by central banks.

17-06-2022 05:50 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Oil trading sideways, gold range-trading

Oil trades sideways Oil, once again, endured big ranges overnight, only to finish not far from where it opened. Once again, Brent crude and WTI saw some heavy selling intraday as markets tried to price in a plethora of central bank hikes and potential recessions.

17-06-2022 04:40 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Central bank tightening sends US dollar lower

US dollar retreats as central banks hike The US dollar fell overnight as traders turned short of USD/JPY ahead of the BOJ meeting, and central banks in the UK and Switzerland hiked policy rates. A rotation from equities to bonds overnight drove down US yields, further eroding short-term support.

17-06-2022 04:34 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Looking for ABE

The post-FOMC rally ran in equities out of steam within 24 hours with Wall Street plummeting overnight once again. Even the most ardent FOMO gnome had a conviction crisis as a swath of central banks followed the Fed’s lead and hiked policy rates.

17-06-2022 04:03 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Oil volatile, gold shines

Oil market remains tight ‘Buy the dip’ might be dead for the stock market, but it probably should still work for energy traders. Despite all the fears of aggressive central bank tightening of monetary policy and the slower economic growth that will ensue, the oil market remains very tight. With gasoline prices surging above 5 dollars a gallon, the Biden administration’s call for oil companies to ramp up refining capacity was easily met with an explanation that they will need the government to

16-06-2022 17:10 GMT by Edward Moya

Stocks fade yesterday's post-FOMC rally, SNB shocker, bitcoin hovers above USD 20k

Central banks continue hawkish stance Wall Street was quick to fade yesterday’s post-FOMC rally as the other major central banks are turning very hawkish with their respective inflation battles. Traders paid special attention to a surprise rate hike by the SNB, which paved the way for more increases in the foreseeable future. The BOE also took rates to the highest levels since 2009 and will likely not be easing up anytime soon with their tightening cycle.

16-06-2022 17:08 GMT by Edward Moya

Japanese yen climbs ahead of BoJ meeting

The yen has posted sharp gains for a second straight day. In the North American session, USD/JPY is trading at 132.09, down 1.27% on the day. Federal Reserve hikes by 0.75% Just a few days ago, the Federal Reserve was expected to raise rates by 0.50%.

16-06-2022 13:27 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Is a recession now inevitable?

Equity markets are experiencing another day of pain on Thursday as central banks continue to signal a willingness to sacrifice the economy in order to get inflation under control. Drama from the central banks Central banks are full of surprises this week whether it's the Fed accepting a recession as the cost of price stability, the SNB raising rates by 50 basis points out of nowhere, the ECB holding an emergency meeting or the BoE seemingly crossing its fingers and hoping 11% inflation goes away

16-06-2022 11:52 GMT by Craig Erlam

Oil steady, gold under pressure

IEA offers a bleak outlook for crude Oil prices are relatively flat on Thursday, after once again edging lower earlier in the session. Crude has been paring gains in recent days after a huge run higher over the previous month but prices are still extremely high.

16-06-2022 11:48 GMT by Craig Erlam

Swiss franc soars after SNB surprise hike

The Swiss franc has posted massive gains today after the Swiss National Bank raised interest rates by 0.50%. In the North American session, USD/CHF is trading at 0.9720, down 2.29% on the day. It has been a week of central bank drama, which started with the Federal Reserve delivering a massive 0.75% rate hike.

16-06-2022 11:41 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Pound falls, recovers after BoE

BoE raises rates by 0.25% The Bank of England raised rates by 0.25% today. The rate hike, the fifth in a row, brings the Bank Rate to 1.25%.

16-06-2022 08:29 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

Oil edges lower, gold range-trades

Oil fall on higher inventories Oil prices had another big intraday range overnight, but ultimately, booked only a small retreat, continuing a theme of energy mostly ignoring the noise in equity and bond markets this week. Oil prices finished lower after US official crude inventories recorded another 2 million-barrel gain, and as the FOMC later that evening downgraded its US growth outlook. Still, by oil’s standards, the falls were modest.

16-06-2022 07:12 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

US dollar remains firm post-FOMC

US retreats after FOMC mega-hike The US dollar gave back some recent gains overnight post-FOMC as Powell’s comments post-meeting were interpreted as implying a less aggressive scale of rate hikes. To me, that is a flawed interpretation, as the FOMC signalled a higher terminal rate and lifted its end-of-2022 target rate as well.

16-06-2022 07:03 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Asian markets mixed after FOMC

Asian equities struggle to follow Wall Street higher Wall Street rallied post-FOMC as Jerome Powell’s post-meeting comments were interpreted as a consistent, but less aggressive pace of rate hikes through the rest of the year. That was all the excuse that the ever-present pent-up buy-the-dip demand needed.

16-06-2022 06:58 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

Markets like their rate hikes rare

Wall Street up, US dollar down after Fed's 0.75% hike Unless you were living on Mars, and even there they probably heard the news, the FOMC hiked the Fed Funds rate by 0.75% overnight to a target range of 1.50%-1.75%, as anticipated by the market. The Fed downgraded its US growth forecasts for 2022 and 2023 but remained adamant there would be no recession.

16-06-2022 06:21 GMT by Jeffrey Halley

US Close - Happy Fed/ECB Day, Traders breathe a sigh of relief, Oil drops on demand outlook, Gold shines, Bitcoin in trouble

Risky assets got their groove back after the Fed restored confidence that they are serious about fighting inflation but that a steady stream of supersized hikes would be unlikely. Wall Street made this an easy policy decision for the Fed as the two-year Treasury yield surged from 2.83% to over 3.40% since Friday’s inflation report. The Fed raised its benchmark rate by 75 basis points, the largest increase since 1994, and signaled more hikes are coming, but that trend won't last beyond 2023. Th

15-06-2022 16:22 GMT by Edward Moya

Market Insights Podcast (Episode 341)

OANDA Senior Market Analyst Craig Erlam reviews the latest market news with Jonny Hart. They discuss the emergency ECB meeting and preview the upcoming Fed, BoJ and BoE monetary policy decisions.

15-06-2022 11:48 GMT by Craig Erlam

New Zealand dollar fights back

NZD/USD is in positive territory on Wednesday, after an extended slide. In the North American session, NZD/USD is trading at 0.6244, up 0.46% on the day. The New Zealand dollar received a boost today from an unexpected source, the European Central Bank.

15-06-2022 11:39 GMT by Kenneth Fisher

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