Powell and Trump, World Bank Head, U.K. Services Shock: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Good morning Americas. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help get your Tuesday started:

• Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell met Donald Trump at the White House for dinner Monday to discuss the economy’s performance and outlook, but the central bank said its chief did not share the president’s expectations for monetary policy.
  • Meanwhile, Trump will nominate senior Treasury official David Malpass to lead the World Bank, according to two administration officials, moving to place at its helm a critic of the development lender and its internationalist principles.
• Staying in the U.S., some of the very hawks who have cheered on the president’s trade war already fear he may end up falling short in his effort to rewrite the U.S. relationship with China.
• The U.K. economy is at risk of stalling after growth in the services sector came close to a standstill, with firms growing increasingly anxious about Brexit.
  • A separate report showed consumer spending recovered slightly in January after a dismal holiday season, though British households are still wary because of Brexit.
• The U.K.’s problems go beyond Brexit. The nation lags behind European peers on investment in automation and that’s not helping its with the constant struggle with productivity
• A manufacturing and export-led slump in Italy’s economy spilled into services at the start of the year, aggravating an already fragile economic situation in the euro area.
• In the race to succeed Mario Draghi as European Central Bank president, Germany’s one-time favorite could yet stage a comeback.
• Central banks in eastern Europe will probably keep borrowing costs unchanged this week as the euro area slowdown dents arguments for hiking even among the strongest advocates of monetary tightening.
• Looking further ahead, Bloomberg Economics investigates how tight labor markets may yet trigger central bank surprises.
• Finally, read why former Federal Reserve Bank of New York President William Dudley is urging investors to watch the economy, not the central bank’s balance sheet.

To contact the reporter on this story: David Goodman in London at dgoodman28@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Fergal O'Brien at fobrien@bloomberg.net, Zoe Schneeweiss

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