interest rates

Global M&A falls 41% in third quarter as rates climb

Global mergers and acquisitions totaled $993 billion in the third quarter, down 41% from the second quarter, according to LSEG data cited by Reuters. It was the first quarter under $1 trillion since the second quarter of 2025. Higher borrowing…

You're all caught up

You've seen all the main stories from the past 2 days.

Hedge funds unwinding bets fuel French bond rout

This week's slide in French government bonds was made worse by hedge funds pulling out of crowded positions in a hurry. The forced selling produced swings that European markets had trouble absorbing, and a senior Fidelity International bond manager said…

Bond markets steady after Treasury yields hit 2002 high

A global selloff in government bonds pushed the 10-year US Treasury yield as high as 5.34% on Thursday, its highest level since 2002. The move followed the benchmark's largest quarterly rise this century. Bond markets steadied on Friday, Oct. 2.…

Traders trim ECB hike bets as eurozone inflation jumps

Traders cut back their bets on European Central Bank rate hikes on Friday. Euro-area government borrowing costs have jumped, and investors now think policymakers may have to go easier to protect the bloc's more indebted members. That shift came on…

UK 30-year gilt yield tops 6% for first time since 1998

The yield on Britain's 30-year government bond rose above 6% on Thursday, Oct. 1, for the first time since early 1998. A global bond selloff that started in the U.S. Treasury market spread to Europe and Japan.

Emerging market bonds beat rich peers as rout deepens

Emerging market government debt is holding up better than bonds in rich economies, even as rising US Treasury yields and a strong dollar push global borrowing costs to their highest levels in decades. According to the Financial Times, investors credit…

Eurozone inflation jumps to 3.8%, highest in three years

Inflation in the euro zone rose to 3.8% in September from 3.2% in August, Eurostat's flash estimate showed on Friday. That is the highest rate since September 2023 and above economists' forecasts. Higher energy costs tied to the Middle East…

French bond turmoil prompts traders to cut ECB hike bets

The European Central Bank's bond-buying tools exist to protect price stability, not to target particular sovereign spreads, Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said on Thursday, Oct. 1. His remarks lowered expectations of an ECB rescue for France as its borrowing costs…

Nagel says ECB targets inflation, not French bond spreads

Consumer prices in the euro zone's largest economies rose faster than expected in September as energy costs from the Iran war kept climbing. The figures have increased pressure on the European Central Bank to raise interest rates a third time…

Asian currencies slide as US yields hit two-decade high

Most Asian and emerging-market currencies fell on Thursday. The US dollar held close to a two-month high, propped up by rising Treasury yields and by oil prices kept high by the Middle East conflict. The Indian rupee drifted toward the…

Yen slides past 158 as Japan’s record intervention fades

The Japanese yen slid past 158 per dollar on Wednesday, September 23, erasing most of the gains from Japan's record currency intervention earlier this year and raising fresh concerns that Tokyo may step in again to defend its currency. USD/JPY…

Japan’s 10-year bond yield hits 30-year high amid Treasury selloff

Japan's benchmark 10-year government bond yield rose to 3.055% on Thursday, its highest level since August 1996, as a sharp selloff in U.S. Treasuries reverberated through global bond markets. The 30-year Japanese government bond yield climbed nearly 7 basis points…

Global debt tops $365 trillion as IIF warns of rollover crunch

Global debt surpassed $365 trillion during the first half of 2026, climbing by more than $10 trillion in six months, with emerging markets accounting for the bulk of the increase, according to the Institute of International Finance's latest Global Debt…

ECB sees no major wage response to inflation surge

The European Central Bank is not detecting a broad wage response to this year's energy-driven inflation spike, the bank's chief economist said Wednesday, offering reassurance that rapid price growth is not yet becoming entrenched in the euro area economy.

ECB’s Lane warns inflation won’t ease until mid-2027

European Central Bank Chief Economist Philip Lane said a second wave of energy price increases will keep eurozone inflation elevated longer than anticipated, with prices not falling back toward the ECB's 2% target until mid-2027. Lane made the remarks in…

Emerging market debt hits record 78% of GDP, highest since 1880

Government debt across emerging market economies has climbed to roughly 78% of GDP, the highest level in at least 143 years of recorded data, according to an analysis posted by The Kobeissi Letter on September 22. The figure, drawn from…

Bundesbank chief says ECB may need to raise rates into restrictive territory

Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said on Tuesday that European Central Bank interest rates remain in neutral territory but that a move into mildly restrictive levels cannot be excluded if elevated energy prices continue to push inflation above target.

Eurozone PMI hits 41-month high, bolstering case for ECB October rate hike

Eurozone business activity surged to its highest level in more than three years in September, defying headwinds from rising energy prices and geopolitical uncertainty while strengthening the case for another European Central Bank interest rate increase as soon as October.

OECD raises inflation forecasts, warns of more rate hikes

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development raised inflation projections for nearly every G20 economy on Wednesday, warning that central banks from the Federal Reserve to the Bank of Japan may need to tighten monetary policy further as a Middle…

Fitch lifts 2026 global growth forecast to 2.6% despite rate risks

Fitch Ratings on Tuesday raised its forecast for global economic growth in 2026 by 0.2 percentage points to 2.6%, saying the world economy has held up better than expected despite the energy shock stemming from the conflict in the Middle…

IMF chief warns ‘winter is coming’ as energy shock reignites global inflation

"Winter is coming," IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva declared on Tuesday at Semafor's Next 3 Billion event in New York, warning that prices will keep climbing as the Iran conflict sends energy costs surging and forces central banks worldwide back…

RBC BlueBay says worst of 2026 bond bear market is over

Mark Dowding, chief investment officer for fixed income at RBC BlueBay Royal Bank of Canada Asset Management, said Tuesday that the worst of this year's global bond rout is likely behind investors, marking a notable shift in outlook from one…

RBNZ, RBA warn oil-driven inflation may force more rate hikes

Central banks in Australia and New Zealand on Tuesday flagged rising inflation risks driven by persistently high oil prices, with top officials from both institutions warning that further interest rate increases may be needed to contain price growth.

ECB’s Lane warns energy shock to keep inflation elevated until mid-2027

European Central Bank Chief Economist Philip Lane said a second wave of rising energy prices will keep eurozone inflation elevated for longer than the central bank had expected, pushing the timeline for a return to the 2% target out to…

UBS, Commerzbank doubt yen recovery after BOJ’s 31-year-high rate hike

The Bank of Japan raised its policy rate to 1.25% last Friday — the highest level in 31 years — but major European banks say the move is unlikely to produce a lasting recovery for the yen.

Strong dollar rattles Asian, EM currencies after Fed’s first rate hike in 3 years

The U.S. dollar's renewed strength following the Federal Reserve's first interest rate increase in three years sent shockwaves through Asian and emerging market currencies on Monday, though some markets showed signs of resilience amid diverging local factors.

Bitcoin surges to 8-month high as falling oil eases yields

Bitcoin climbed to its highest level since late January on Monday, briefly touching $85,248 as falling oil prices eased pressure on government bond yields and revived appetite for riskier assets across global markets. The move extended a rally that began…

Gold dips as coordinated central bank rate hikes reshape pricing dynamics

Gold prices slipped modestly on Monday after steadying near $4,370 an ounce, as a synchronized wave of central bank rate hikes reshaped the forces driving the precious metal's price. The Federal Reserve's 25-basis-point increase on Sept. 16 — its first…

ECB finds gas price surges now hit inflation faster

The European Central Bank said on Monday that wholesale natural gas price changes now pass through to consumer inflation within one to three months in more than half of euro area countries, a sharp acceleration from 2022 that complicates the…

IMF chief says global debt at record, urges urgent action

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva urged governments on Sunday to take immediate action to narrow budget deficits, warning that global public debt has reached a record high and is on track to surpass 100% of global GDP by…