Global Markets: Wildfire destroys large part of Jasper

By Glen Hallick

 

Glacier Farm Media MarketsFarm – The following is a glance at the news moving markets in Canada and globally.

 

 

  • Hours before the opening ceremony for the Paris Olympic games was to begin, a series of fires struck France’s high-speed rail lines on Friday. With around 800,000 customers affected, the state-owned rail company SNCF said it was a “massive attack aimed at paralyzing the network.” France’s transport minister commented, “Everything points us to these fires being deliberate.”

 

  • Analysts are split over the possibility of the Bank of England announcing an interest rate cut come Aug. 1, a Reuters report said on Friday. A Reuters poll found that there’s a 50 per cent chance of the BoE cutting its rate by 25 basis points next Thursday. The current rate is 5.25 per cent, the highest in 16 years and the central bank has not reduced its rate since 2020.

 

  • The likelihood of the United States Federal Reserve cutting its key interest rates improved with new economic data from the Department of Commerce on Friday. The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index slipped to 2.5 per cent in July from 2.6 per cent a year ago. The Fed is scheduled to make its next rate announcement following its Federal Open Market Committee meetings Sept. 17 to 18.

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