Analysts from RBC are out with a quick snapshot of the bank’s expectations for 2019 regarding the major central banks around the globe.
Key highlights
On the US Federal Reserve, RBC expects the Fed’s rate hike cycle to come to an early end in the second half of 2019, with RBC America analysts cutting their Fed forecast from four rate hikes to just two for the year, even though the US economy is still expected to grow by around 3%.
The Bank of Canada is largely seen in the same boat as the US Fed, with their rate cycle expected to stall out later in 2019.
For the Bank of England, RBC analysts expect only a single rate hike this year, fueled by continued Brexit uncertainty as well as a loss of “economic momentum”.
The Reserve Bank of Australia is broadly seen holding on rates for quite a while, and RBC’s current expectations of a 50 basis point tightening very late in 2019 is being brought into question, leaving analysts to wait for the RBA’s first appearance of 2019 in early February to set the tone for the rest of the year.
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