Thursday 22nd August 2019

The FOMC minutes released today highlight the divisions in the Fed at their last meeting. Phil Dobbie asks NAB’s David de Garis what this means for the next meeting. They also discuss the growing budget deficit in the US and further calls from the President for deeper rate cuts. Meanwhile, a 30-year bond sale in Germany fell short of expectations, whilst markets in Italy responded positively to the prospect of a new coalition government without another election. Also in Europe, British PM Boris Johnson has been meeting with Angela Merkel, who suggested he come up with a backstop alternative in 30 days – he accepted the ‘blistering timetable’ but it didn’t engender positive sentiment in the pound. Today PMIs for Europe will be the numbers to watch and whatever comes out of Jackson Hole - White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney has already made headlines at the get-together suggesting the US might go into recession in 2020, albeit it slight and short.