Page 4 - Us Federal Agency

America's debt tops $34 trn, but commission to address it appears dead

For Mike Johnson it was effectively a Day 1 priority. It's well past time, the newly elected House speaker said in October, to establish a bipartisan commission to tackle the federal government's growing USD 34.6 trillion in debt. "The consequences if we don't act now are unbearable, he said, echoing warnings from his predecessor and other House Republicans. More than six months later, the proposal appears all but dead, extinguished by vocal opposition from both the right and the left. The collapse underscores an unyielding dynamic in Washington, with lawmakers in both parties loath to consider the unpopular tradeoffs that would be necessary to stem the nation's swelling tide of red ink particularly in an election year. Facing the reality that any fiscal commission would almost certainly suggest that Americans pay more or get less from their government, lawmakers have time and again done what they do so well: punt the problem to the next Congress. And they seem poised to do so ..

Dollar broadly steady after soft US jobs report; yen starts on back foot

The offshore yuan was last at 7.1959 per dollar, and gained more than 1 per cent last week

Powell's reassuring tone may not be enough for inflation-spooked markets

Bond investors have been struggling for months, with the 10-year Treasury yield up 70 basis points year-to-date

Stocks in Asia inch higher, Yen wobbles after volatile start to week

China stocks were mixed in early trading with the blue-chip index easing 0.07%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was up 0.5%

Jerome Powell likely to keep borrowing rates higher-for-longer time

In the euro zone, data may show that the slowdown in inflation stalled in April for the first time this year

Rupee depreciates 5 paise to 83.33 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee depreciated 5 paise to 83.33 against the US dollar in early trade on Friday, tracking a strong greenback overseas and a positive trend in domestic equities. However, elevated crude prices in international markets and unabated foreign capital outflows capped the gains in domestic unit, forex traders said. At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened weak at 83.30 against the dollar and then further slipped to 83.33, registering a fall of 5 paise over its previous close. In the initial trade, the domestic unit was moving in a tight range of 83.35-83.30 against the American currency. In the previous session on Thursday, the rupee had settled at 83.28 against the dollar. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.09 per cent to 105.54. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.35 per cent to USD 89.32 per barrel. In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 103.64 point

Trump advisers discuss penalties for nations that move away from dollar

As president, Trump weighed forcibly weakening the dollar to support the domestic manufacturing sector

Central banks globally struggle to keep up with US Fed's rate cut timeline

IMF officials urged Asian central banks to stick to their own knitting and avoid the temptation to lash their policy decisions too closely to anticipated moves by the Fed

Fed to cut US rates 'at some point, but no hurry', says Loretta Mester

"At some point, as we get more confidence, we will start to normalize policy back to a less restrictive stance, but we don't have to do that in a hurry," Mester said

Powell denies any guidance on rate cuts, hints at 'restriction' instead

Powell's comments further squashed any lingering expectations of the Fed cutting rates in the near term, with markets pricing in September as the new starting point of the easing cycle

Rupee depreciates 6 paise to 83.44 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee declined 6 paise to 83.44 against the US dollar in early trade on Monday, tracking negative equity markets and withdrawal of foreign funds amid renewed concerns over geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Forex traders said a strong American currency in the overseas market and curde oil prices hovering above USD 90 per barrel also dented investor sentiments. At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 83.46 against the dollar and gained slightly to 83.44 in the initial trade, registering a fall of 6 paise over its previous close. On Friday, the rupee closed 7 paise lower at 83.38 against the US dollar. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.08 per cent lower at 105.75. The higher dollar index was attributed to diminishing expectations of an immediate rate cut by the US Federal Reserve. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, declined 0.31 per cent to USD 90.17 per barrel.

Gold price slips Rs 10 to Rs 72,540, silver down Rs 100 at Rs 85,400

In Mumbai, the price of ten grams of 22-carat gold is at par with that in Kolkata and Hyderabad, at Rs 66,490

Gold price rises to Rs 72,230, silver price slips Rs 100 to Rs 84,900

The price of one kilogram of silver in Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata stood at Rs 84,900

US Treasury seeks more review authority over deals with foreign firms

U.S. Treasury wants to enhance the power of a little-known, secretive government committee to review deals made between U.S. firms and foreign investors. This comes as high-profile deals involving foreign investment in the U.S. like Chinese firm ByteDance's ownership of popular social media app TikTok and Japanese firm Nippon Steel's bid to purchase Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel Corp. receive increased scrutiny by lawmakers and even President Joe Biden. A new proposed rulemaking would strengthen powers for the interagency Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States known as CFIUS which is tasked with investigating corporate deals for national security concerns and holds power to force the company to divest ownership or change major parts of the firm. The rulemaking if finalized would expand the committee's subpoena authority, allow the committee to request more information from parties to a proposed sale and expand circumstances when fines can be imposed and their size

US-China deepening cooperation on financial stability issues: US officials

The exercises will help establish lines of communication between US and Chinese regulators and identify areas of potential cross-border contagion and other risks, the US officials said

Yellen meets China's central bank chief, presses case on excess capacity

Yellen will wrap up her trip to Guangzhou and Beijing with a news conference later on Monday

Amid healthy US jobs report, US Fed likely to delay interest rate cuts

US employers hired far more workers than expected in March and raised wages at a steady clip, the Labor Department said

Highlights: BJP fields ex-diplomat Taranjit Sandhu from Amritsar, singer Hans Raj Hans from Faridkot, ex-Cong MP Preneet Kaur from Patiala for LS 2024

From Amit Shah's visit to Assam to US Federal Chair Jerome Powell's statement on interest rates and keeping an eye on inflation, track all the news from around the world here

Fed doesn't need to be in a hurry to cut rates, reiterates Jerome Powell

Investors are now betting the US central bank will make that first cut in June

US Congress rushes to approve package of spending bills to prevent shutdown

Lawmakers are racing on Friday to pass the final spending package needed for the current budget year, a long overdue action that will set funding for federal agencies and push any threats of a government shutdown to the fall. With spending set to expire for several key federal agencies at midnight on Friday, the House and Senate are expected to take up to spare a USD 1.2 trillion measure that combines six annual spending bills into one package. More than 70 per cent of the money would go to defence. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is bringing the bill up under a streamlined process that requires two-thirds support for approval. It will pass. We're whipping the bill and I expect a good number," Johnson said, referring to how leadership rallies support for a bill. While lawmakers could miss the midnight deadline for funding the government action in the Senate could take time the practical impact would be minimal. With most federal workers off duty over the weekend, and many government