Fed Meeting, U.K. Inflation Hots Up, China’s Slowdown: Eco Day

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Welcome to Wednesday, Americas. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help you start the day:

• Federal Reserve policy makers are poised to accelerate their removal of monetary stimulus as a step toward the first interest-rate increases since 2018 as they pivot to restraining the hottest inflation in almost 40 years
  • Here’s Bloomberg Economics’ take on the decision
• Meanwhile, the hottest rate of inflation in four decades has ushered in a wilder era of bond-market volatility, causing investors to shop for hedges to protect their portfolios
• U.K. inflation surged to its highest level in more than a decade in November, exceeding 5% months before the Bank of England had expected and putting more pressure on the central bank to act
• China’s economy took and knock last month from an ongoing property market slump and sporadic Covid outbreaks, prompting economists to warn that recent easing measures may not be enough to stabilize growth
• The Swiss National Bank’s long-standing claim that the franc is “highly valued” is looking harder to justify as officials watch it strengthen to within striking distance of parity with the euro. How officials describe the franc will feature in their decision on Thursday
• Chile’s central bank signaled a more restrictive monetary policy will be put in place at least temporarily to tame soaring inflation

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