The US Federal Reserve held interest rates steady for the second time this year, a widely expected move amid turmoil in the Middle East and rising energy prices.

Fed officials faced a confluence of issues to consider in their meeting this week: soaring oil and gas prices, fluctuating inflation that still remains above the Fed’s target of 2%, and a weakened job market that unexpectedly saw 92,000 losses last month.

All but one of the 12 voting members of the committee voted to keep rates at a range of 3.5% to 3.75%, resisting enormous pressure from Donald Trump to lower borrowing costs at the risk of driving up prices in the long term.

In a statement, the board noted that “uncertainty about the economic outlook remains elevated” and “implications of developments in the Middle East for the US economy are uncertain”. (Guardian – Continue Reading)

The Bank of Japan is widely expected to keep its benchmark rate unchanged on Thursday as soaring oil prices are set to complicate efforts for the central bank to reach its 2% stable inflation target.

All 51 BoJ watchers surveyed expect the board to hold its benchmark rate at 0.75% when its two-day policy meeting concludes on Thursday. The bank typically announces its decision around noon Tokyo time followed by Governor Kazuo Ueda’s press conference at 3:30 p.m. (Bloomberg – Continue Reading)

Euro area central bankers are widely expected to stay the course on interest rates Thursday as they scramble to gauge the impact of the Iran war on consumer prices and economic growth in Europe.

Traders and analysts disagree about the next steps for the public lender, with swap market data showing the former expect at least one interest rate hike by July as a Reuters poll said the wide majority of economists anticipate no changes this year.

Headline annual inflation in the Eurozone remains near the ECB’s target range of 2% over the medium term. It rose unexpectedly to 1.9% last month from 1.7% in January, which prompted some commentators to suggest the bank could take a more hawkish stance this month. (LiveSquawk – Continue Reading)

Swiss rate-setters are widely expected to keep their key interest rates at current levels Thursday, a policy they may repeat for the rest of the year, according to analysts.

An economists’ poll predicted an unchanged Swiss National Bank policy rate of zero percent. A hold this month would repeat the decisions in September and December, which followed six straight reductions.

Headline annual inflation in the Alpine country last month held 0.1%, more than expected and enough to keep it near the bottom of the SNB’s target range of 0-2% for consumer price growth. The annual number was forecast to be negative, which could have supported arguments for taking the benchmark interest rate below zero, but February’s unexpectedly high monthly consumer price growth of 0.6% showed rising household costs. (LiveSquawk – Continue Reading)

President Trump hasn't made up his mind yet on whether he wants to send American forces into Iran and seize the country's nuclear material, which would be a very dangerous operation, sources familiar with the matter told CBS News.

In private conversations, he has told people close to him: "I have a lot of decisions to make."

The Pentagon has prepared multiple options for the president as potential next steps in the Iran war.

After the U.S. military strikes on three nuclear sites last summer, the International Atomic Energy Agency, a nuclear watchdog, said it could not account for an estimated 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium Iran had before the strikes. (CBS – Continue Reading)