The Bank of Japan will be the first of several major central banks to announce policy this week. Despite signalling a desire for higher rates, the ongoing uncertainty stemming from the Gulf crisis is likely to keep the Tokyo-based lender of last resort sidelined for now.

On Tuesday, the central bank’s Policy Board is widely expected to hold its main rate steady at 0.75% when it concludes its two-day meeting on 28 April.

Despite its recent inclination towards tightening, comments from Governor Kazuo Ueda suggest the bank is in a holding pattern. Speaking to reporters in Washington last week, he described the energy shock as a double-edged sword. “The current situation involves a significant shock from rising energy prices. This creates both upside risks to prices and, at the same time, downside risks to the economy. That is why policy responses are very difficult. It is not easy to give a general answer.”

Rate markets have pared back expectations for a hike, with implied probabilities falling below 10% ahead of the decision. (LiveSquawk – Continue Reading)

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz tore into Washington on Monday, warning the Trump administration is being played and “humiliated” by the regime in Tehran and lacks a clear strategy to end the conflict.

Speaking during a school visit in his home region in western Germany, Merz said the U.S. had misjudged the Iranian regime and entered the war without a clear exit plan.

“The Iranians are clearly stronger than expected and the Americans clearly have no truly convincing strategy in the negotiations either,” Merz said, according to German Press Agency dpa. “A whole nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership.”

The remarks marked some of Merz’s fiercest criticism yet of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. At the outset of the war, Merz was relatively supportive of the U.S. effort, saying Germany shared the goal of regime change in Iran despite doubts about the Trump administration’s methods. (POLITICO – Continue Reading)

Billionaire investor Ray Dalio warned that the U.S. economy has slipped into a stagflationary environment and said it would be a mistake for potential Federal Reserve chair successor Kevin Warsh to lower interest rates.

The founder of Bridgewater Associates said persistent inflation pressures alongside slowing growth create a backdrop that demands caution from policymakers.

“We are certainly in a stagflationary period,” Dalio said Monday on CNBC’s “Money Movers.” “Because of the issues that are here, in terms of a more immediate inflation, farther from the target.”

Dalio said that if Warsh, who now has a clear path to replacing Jerome Powell as the next leader of the Fed in mid-May, were to cut rates, it would risk damaging confidence in the central bank at a critical moment. (CNBC – Continue Reading)

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis revealed the new redistricted congressional map for the state, which shows the GOP gaining an extra four seats.

Should the state legislature, which holds a Republican majority in both the state House and Senate, approve the redrawing, it would then return to DeSantis to be signed into law and would apply to the 2026 midterms.

"Florida got shortchanged in the 2020 Census, and we’ve been fighting for fair representation ever since," DeSantis told Fox News Digital. "Our population has since grown dramatically, and we have moved from a Democrat majority to a 1.5 million Republican advantage. Drawing maps based on race, which is reflected in our current congressional districts, is unconstitutional and should be prohibited." (Fox News – Continue Reading)