The European Central Bank will act decisively and swiftly if the current surge in energy costs risks a broader bout of inflation, though for now it’s still assessing the shock caused by the Iran war, according to President Christine Lagarde . While the situation is different from 2022, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine ultimately sent consumer-price growth into double digits, there are “reasons fo...
The European Central Bank will act decisively and swiftly if the current surge in energy costs risks a broader bout of inflation, though for now it’s still assessing the shock caused by the Iran war, according to President Christine Lagarde . While the situation is different from 2022, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine ultimately sent consumer-price growth into double digits, there are “reasons for vigilance,” Lagarde said Wednesday in a speech. “We will not act before we have sufficient information on the size and persistence of the shock and its propagation,” she told the ECB Watchers Conference in Frankfurt. “But we will not be paralyzed by hesitation: our commitment to delivering 2% inflation over the medium term is unconditional.” Soaring energy costs brought on by the conflict in the Middle East are stoking fears of another inflation spike like the one four years ago. Bundesbank chief Joachim Nagel and others have signaled borrowing costs may need to be lifted as soon as April if the price outlook sours further. “We are prepared, if appropriate, to make changes to our policy at any meeting,” Lagarde said. Lagarde laid out three cases on how the ECB should to the current situation. “If the energy shock is seen to be limited in size and short-lived, the classical prescription of looking through should apply. Transmission lags mean that a monetary-policy response would arrive too late and risk being counterproductive.” “If the shock gives rise to a large though not-too-persistent overshoot of our target, some measured adjustment of policy could be warranted. The optimal response to such a deviation is smaller when the cause is exogenous supply disruptions rather than strong demand, but it is not necessarily zero.” “Moreover, to leave such an overshoot entirely unaddressed could pose a communication risk: the public may find it difficult to understand a reaction function that does not react.” “If we expect inflation to deviate significantly and persistently from t...
American economist Herbert Stein wrote in a 1985 column for The Wall Street Journal , "If it can't go on forever, it will stop." Investors should remember his statement, which became known as Stein's law, in the current global uncertainty. The conflict with Iran will end eventually. However, the way it concludes could create significantly different landscapes for investors. Here are three scenario...
American economist Herbert Stein wrote in a 1985 column for The Wall Street Journal , "If it can't go on forever, it will stop." Investors should remember his statement, which became known as Stein's law, in the current global uncertainty. The conflict with Iran will end eventually. However, the way it concludes could create significantly different landscapes for investors. Here are three scenarios for the Iran crisis endgame -- and the stocks to buy for each. Image source: Getty Images. Continue reading
Pop Mart posted blockbuster earnings off the global Labubu craze, but that didn’t stop investors from dumping its stock, which closed 22.5% lower on Wednesday.
Pop Mart posted blockbuster earnings off the global Labubu craze, but that didn’t stop investors from dumping its stock, which closed 22.5% lower on Wednesday.
Your full retirement age is arguably the most important number in Social Security, because so many things revolve around it. This includes how your claiming age affects your benefits, how much you can earn if you claim benefits before then, and how much your spouse is possibly eligible for. For a long time, the full retirement age was 65, but after Congress passed the Social Security Amendments of...
Your full retirement age is arguably the most important number in Social Security, because so many things revolve around it. This includes how your claiming age affects your benefits, how much you can earn if you claim benefits before then, and how much your spouse is possibly eligible for. For a long time, the full retirement age was 65, but after Congress passed the Social Security Amendments of 1983, this age increased for those born in 1938 or later. The full retirement age for people born in 1960 or later is 67. It was previously 66 years and 10 months for people born in 1959, many of whom have reached or will reach it during 2026. Unfortunately, this isn't music to many people's ears. Continue reading
While President Donald Trump claimed that negotiations are underway to end the war on Iran as Tehran wants to make a deal, an Iranian military spokesman has suggested that the U.S. is "negotiating with itself." "Has the level of your inner struggle reached the stage of you negotiating with yourself?" Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters (Iran's main m...
While President Donald Trump claimed that negotiations are underway to end the war on Iran as Tehran wants to make a deal, an Iranian military spokesman has suggested that the U.S. is "negotiating with itself." "Has the level of your inner struggle reached the stage of you negotiating with yourself?" Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters (Iran's main military command), asked in response to Trump's statements. "You will see neither your investments in the region nor the former prices of energy and oil again, until you understand that stability in the region is guaranteed by the powerful hand of our armed forces," Zolfaghari warned. While the U.S. reportedly sent Iran a 15-point plan to end the war, Tehran has set a high bar for ceasefire negotiations, The Wall Street Journal reported. Iran is demanding that the U.S. shut down its bases in the Gulf region, pay reparations for its attacks and lift all sanctions, people familiar with the matter told WSJ . It wants to collect fees from ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, an end to Israeli strikes on Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and guarantees that the war won't restart. Tehran is also seeking to keep its missile program with no negotiations to limit it, according to the report . "Markets desperately want to believe in the positive," UBS' Paul Donovan noted. "Focus on the apparent 15-point U.S. plan to end the war has received more attention than Iranian dismissals of this, or the fact that passage through the Strait of Hormuz is minimal." More on Iran war Wall Street Uncertain Amid U.S.-Iran (Potential) Talks U.S. Just Blinked In This War: It's Like Last Year's Tariff Playbook Commodities: De-Escalation Hopes Fade Crude oil slides as U.S. sends proposal to Iran to end war Trump: Iran offered U.S. a 'present' to show good faith
A Chinese national accused of raping and strangling a woman during a violent home invasion appeared in a New Zealand court on Wednesday to face charges, seven months after he was extradited from Singapore. Zhang Xuesong reportedly fled to China following the alleged March 2024 Auckland break-in, complicating efforts to arrest him as no extradition treaty exists between the two countries. The 41-ye...
A Chinese national accused of raping and strangling a woman during a violent home invasion appeared in a New Zealand court on Wednesday to face charges, seven months after he was extradited from Singapore. Zhang Xuesong reportedly fled to China following the alleged March 2024 Auckland break-in, complicating efforts to arrest him as no extradition treaty exists between the two countries. The 41-year-old subsequently visited Singapore, where he was returned to New Zealand last September. Zhang,...
Shipments of foreign-branded phones, including Apple's ( AAPL ) iPhone, in China fell 7.7% in February year-over-year, Reuters reported, citing its calculations based on data from a government-affiliated research firm. The data from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, or CAICT, showed that shipments of foreign-branded phones in China were 2.4M units in February, the ...
Shipments of foreign-branded phones, including Apple's ( AAPL ) iPhone, in China fell 7.7% in February year-over-year, Reuters reported, citing its calculations based on data from a government-affiliated research firm. The data from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, or CAICT, showed that shipments of foreign-branded phones in China were 2.4M units in February, the report added . Overall phone shipments in China in February fell 14.6% year-on-year to 16.8M units, the report noted. China's smartphone market is dominated by companies such as vivo, Xiaomi ( XIACF ) ( XIACY ), Huawei Technologies, Apple ( AAPL ), Oppo, and Honor. Last week, Counterpoint Research said that Apple's ( AAPL ) iPhone sales in China surged 23% year-over-year in the first nine weeks of 2026, contrary to the broader market decline where phonemakers are planning to increase prices amid rising memory prices. More on Apple Apple Stock Price Firms Near $252 After WWDC Date Steadies Sentiment Apple Stock Price Slips At $252 As Tech Investors Pivot To Defensive Positioning Apple: Embracing AI The Way It Knows Best, Through Design (Rating Upgrade) Apple may launch standalone Siri app, 'Ask Siri' button in iOS 27: report Apple's C1X modem among key news reports highlighted by Wells Fargo