Global stocks fall after comments by Jerome Powell on interest rates
London — World stocks were set to snap a record 15-month long winning streak on Wednesday, tumbling another 0.25% after new US Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell’s comments suggested the possibility of four US interest-rate rises in 2018, rather than three. Barely recovered after an early-February sell-off, equity sentiment has been shaken by Powell and by data showing China’s manufacturing sector slowing to its weakest in more than one-and-a-half years and Japanese industrial output down the most since March 2011. Powell, in his debut testimony to Congress on Wednesday, struck a mildly hawkish note, noting that inflation had risen since December and vowing to prevent the economy from overheating. That was enough for traders to add bets on the Fed’s squeezing in another rate rise this year, with futures tied to target policy rates now pricing a one-in-three chance of a fourth hike. With US 10-year yields again approaching recent four-year highs, New York shares closed 1% lower on Tu...
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