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On hold, and holding off

natwest-currency-exchange-podcast economics-business-work May 1, 2026 source →
Claims
118
Domain
economics-business-work
Reading time
9 min
Record
On hold, and holding off

Claims from this story

Every atomic assertion extracted from the underlying record, ranked by evidence strength.

Global central banks are trying to hold off on making decisions as long as possible due to uncertainty from the Middle East conflict.

paraphrasestatedeconomics-business-workMay 1, 2026

The market pricing for central banks (ECB, BOE, Fed) feels out of touch with investor beliefs that hawkish adjustments are overdone.

paraphrasestatedeconomics-business-workMay 1, 2026

Local media reported confirmed intervention in the yen market, though official confirmation is pending.

paraphrasestatedeconomics-business-workMay 1, 2026

FX interventions are not very effective in changing the fundamental outlook.

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Policy decisions from G4 central banks did not contain a lot of interesting information on the policy front.

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Guidance from G4 central banks was certainly interesting.

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Japan recently made a surprise move in terms of FX policy.

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Currency valuation is becoming somewhat stretched.

paraphrasestatedeconomics-business-workMay 1, 2026

The Middle East situation is a broader theme impacting markets.

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Oil prices have moved up towards or breached previous highs this week.

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The market is taking a more pessimistic view on the lagged process of resuming peace talks in the Middle East.

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Central banks made decisions this week with oil prices flirting with post-war highs.

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The Bank of England's decision was made on April 30th.

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The severity and duration of the Middle East conflict are uncertain, impacting inflation and growth.

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The Bank of England's decision contained little new information in its vote count, minutes, or scenario analysis.

paraphrasestatedeconomics-business-workMay 1, 2026

The Bank of England's decision offered something for both dovish and hawkish views.

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Data dependency will be key for the Bank of England over the next six weeks until the June meeting.

paraphrasestatedeconomics-business-workMay 1, 2026

The Bank of England is watching for signs of second-round effects and inflation expectations moving.

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The currency impact of the Bank of England's decision is relatively balanced due to no big surprise.

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Sterling was slightly stronger on the day of recording, but not meaningfully so.

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The Bank of England's vote count was 8-1 in favor of unchanged rates.

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The chief economist of the Bank of England voted for a rate hike.

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The chief economist is a known hawk, so his vote for a hike was not a big surprise.

paraphrasestatedeconomics-business-workMay 1, 2026

The Bank of England set out guidance through three scenarios (A, B, C).

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Scenario A for the Bank of England assumes no severe economic impact and oil prices coming down in line with the futures curve.

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Scenario B for the Bank of England suggests a slightly more hawkish outlook with second-round effects requiring 25-50 basis points of tightening.

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Scenario C for the Bank of England involves a more aggressive tightening, but is considered a long way off.

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Interest rates continue to be mildly supportive.

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There is a strange disconnect between front-end pricing and investor views regarding Bank of England rate hikes.

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Market pricing suggests a Bank of England rate hike in June and potentially three total by year-end.

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Investors generally do not share the market's view of aggressive Bank of England rate hikes.

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Sterling's continued resilience is a key takeaway.

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The energy price shock in the Middle East plays to UK vulnerabilities like its net energy importer position, fiscal policy, political risks, and weak growth.

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Underlying capital flows into the UK from the Middle East and US may be supporting Sterling.

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Relative interest rate differentials are important drivers of FX movements.

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A parallel shift in hawkish pricing across jurisdictions has contributed to a lack of real directional momentum and volatility in FX markets recently.

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The ECB decision was very similar to the Bank of England's, adopting a wait-and-see approach.

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The ECB considered a rate hike but it was unanimously rejected.

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Central banks face a balancing act where energy price shocks negatively hit growth but push up inflation.

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Growth ultimately wins out, leading to rising unemployment and falling wage growth if there are no second-round effects.

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The ECB is facing similar market pricing to other central banks, with markets expecting rate hikes at the June meeting.

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The ECB did a good job of pushing back against market expectations for immediate rate hikes.

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The ECB will get more information over the next six weeks to inform its June decision.

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Consumer inflation expectations saw a sharp move up this week.

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Rising inflation expectations, particularly from companies, would be something the ECB would have to address.

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Models for Eurodollar, using relative interest rates as key drivers, have remained remarkably stable through the Middle East conflict.

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Eurodollar models have not required re-estimation or moving time frames for a very long time.

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Three drivers for Eurodollar movements are short-end rates, European government bond spreads, and the steepness of the European bond curve relative to the US.

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Eurodollar is currently priced fairly at current levels, with no real misalignment.

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Pressure for Eurodollar is to drift higher, but a sharp move higher is not expected unless rate outlooks in Europe or the US change significantly.

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Eurodollar moves are much smaller than in 2022, reflecting a different US position and less dramatic shifts in relative rates.

paraphrasestatedeconomics-business-workMay 1, 2026

The dollar's position in the current energy shock is different from the onset of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

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Jean-Claude Trichet is referenced by market participants regarding the ECB's 2011 mid-cycle rate hikes, which are broadly considered ill-advised.

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Markets are skeptical of current market pricing for central bank rate hikes, similar to the sentiment around Trichet's actions.

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The Federal Reserve, like the ECB and Bank of England, kept interest rates unchanged this week.

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The Fed chose to leave its easing bias intact, hinting at potential future rate cuts.

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Three regional presidents dissented against the Fed's easing bias language, advocating for a neutral bias.

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Hawkish dissenters pushed for guidance indicating that the next Fed move could be either a cut or a hike.

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The March FOMC meeting minutes hinted at several officials calling for a change in guidance.

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Powell's message on policy was a comfortable 'wait and see' posture.

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