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The dollar rose to a four-year peak against the yen, within striking distance of the key 100 mark, on Wednesday after minutes of the Federal Reserve's March meeting reinforced expectations of an end to its bond-buying sooner rather than later. The

Germany is heading for a recession of its own making, warned billionaire George Soros. In a speech in Frankfurt this week, the Hungarian-born investor said he expected Europe's largest economy to be contracting by the time Germans vote in national

Bank lobbyists and congressional staff received potentially market-moving Federal Reserve information 19 hours before the public in a release the central bank called accidental. Brian Gross, a member of the Fed’s congressional liaison staff

Markets are very quiet this morning. US futures are essentially flat. Europe is not going anywhere either. Pretty much the only big mover was the same-old Japan, which gained another 2%, hitting a new 5-year high. As you can see on the Nikkei chart

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. ( GS ) has cut its forecasts for the Japanese yen against the dollar based on the aggressive policy easing by the Bank of Japan and a pickup in the U.S. economy. In a note dated Wednesday, the bank said that it now sees the

The stock market's epic bull run continues. Yesterday, the S&P 500 closed at an all-time high. One of the notable characteristics of this rally has been the lack of major pullbacks or corrections. Perhaps it is due to the absence of short sellers

The cost of the bailout for Cyprus has increased to 23bn euros ($30bn; £19.5bn), according to a draft document prepared by the country's creditors. The original cost of the bailout was put at 17.5bn euros. But the new total, disclosed in a document

Last month, I wrote a post titled “Sorry, Bitcoin Isn’t a ‘Currency’” pointing out that whatever the merits of Bitcoin as an investment, its use as an actual currency useful for buying and selling was minimal. I wrote it thinking that I was largely

What would you do if you got your hands on a closely watched report that often moves stocks, bonds and currency markets, and it was sent to you by the Federal Reserve the day before its official release? Would you trade on the information it

This is it – the moment the Abenomics-watchers have been waiting for. Wednesday night, the Bank of Japan will conclude its first monetary policy meeting with new BoJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda at the helm. So far, Japan's great "Abenomics" experiment –

The European Central Bank is expected to keep interest rates unchanged on Thursday but investors will be looking for any signs it is preparing for a cut in coming months to help lift the euro zone out of recession. Despite a recent drop in economic

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee today voted to maintain the official Bank Rate paid on commercial bank reserves at 0.5%. The Committee also voted to maintain the stock of asset purchases financed by the issuance of central bank

At today’s meeting the Governing Council of the ECB decided that the interest rate on the main refinancing operations and the interest rates on the marginal lending facility and the deposit facility will remain unchanged at 0.75%, 1.50% and 0.00%

The Bank of Japan unleashed the world's most intense burst of monetary stimulus on Thursday, promising to inject about $1.4 trillion into the economy in less than two years, a radical gamble that sent the yen reeling and bond yields to record lows

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said the bank stands ready to cut interest rates if the economy deteriorates further, and officials are considering additional measures to boost growth as the debt crisis enters its fourth year. “Our

The initial plan to make small savers pay for the Cyprus bailout was "not smart", the European Central Bank (ECB) president has said. ECB president Mario Draghi said a proposal to make "insured depositors" pay did not come from the ECB, the European

Germany's economy slowed to "near stagnation" last month, while France's recorded its biggest contraction for four years, according to a closely watched survey. The Markit composite purchasing managers' index (PMI), which measures both the

Haruhiko Kuroda yesterday followed in the footsteps of Ben S. Bernanke and Mario Draghi as he swung the Bank of Japan (8301) from incremental moves to unprecedented stimulus in his first policy meeting as governor. The BOJ will double the monetary

The Bank of Japan's decision to fire one big shot in its fight to end deflation is a clear signal new Governor Haruhiko Kuroda is not one for constant tinkering with settings, and it will take something big for him to load up his policy cannon again

German factory orders rose more than twice as much as economists forecast in February, adding to signs that Europe’s largest economy returned to growth in the first quarter. Orders, adjusted for seasonal swings and inflation, increased 2.3 percent