Investors feel the pinch of hawkish Fed, strong US data [Video]

A week packed with central bank decisions is coming to an end with a sour taste in everybody’s mouth. The Federal Reserve (Fed)’s decision to cut rates by 25bp was fully meaningless and the incoming data is a proof. The US Q3 growth was revised to 3.1% from 2.8% printed earlier, the sales growth was revised higher from 3 to 3.3% and core PCE priced – though lower than the quarter before – was also revised slightly higher to 2.20%, raising worries that even the two rate cuts from the Fed next year would be too much. In the UK, the Bank of England (BoE) held rates but refrained from committing to a plan, and the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) also opted for a no change despite telling investors earlier this month that they will moderately loosen their monetary policy.

As such, the US dollar extends gains, major currencies struggle, appetite for risky assets is waning and crude oil is down.