This week, the focus will be on negotiations on Germany's fiscal package. The package is expected to be approved by the Bundestag on Tuesday and by the Bundesrat on Friday. It is expected that the vote will be successful, but there is a possibility of disagreement between individual representatives of the CSU/CDU, as well as possible opposition from the Free Voters of Bavaria party.
In the United States, President Donald Trump announced upcoming talks with Russian President Putin on Tuesday/The purpose of the upcoming dialogue is to find ways to end the conflict in Ukraine. At the same time, data from the United States on retail sales for February will be published. Investors are closely watching to see if the recent decline in consumer confidence will have an impact on retail sales.
The Fed meeting will be held on Wednesday. The Central Bank is expected to keep the interest rate at the current level. Attention will be focused on Jerome Powell's comments on the prospects for easing policy, the possible end of the quantitative tightening program (QT), and economic growth forecasts. On Thursday, the Bank of England is likely to keep the rate at 4.50%, and the Swiss National Bank (SNB) may cut the rate by 25 bps to 0.25% amid low inflation expectations.
Key economic events
Germany: approval of the fiscal package
In Germany, the new ruling coalition has reached an agreement with the Greens on easing the Schuldenbrem budget rule and setting up an infrastructure fund. In general, the agreement corresponds to the original draft. Key concessions to the Greens include allocating 100 billion euros out of a total of 500 billion euros for environmental projects. The mechanism for excluding military spending in excess of 1% of GDP from the budget rule has also been retained, and now it includes assistance to Ukraine. The regional authorities also agreed to ease the "black zero" policy.
The Eurozone: inflation indicators
The final inflation data in Germany, France and Spain did not bring significant surprises. While France and Spain confirmed their preliminary estimates, German inflation was revised down to 2.6% YoY from 2.8% previously. This factor will affect the overall inflation rate of the eurozone, taking into account the weight of Germany in the calculation of the index (28%).
USA: Consumer sentiment
The University of Michigan recorded a significant decrease in the consumer confidence index caused by increased inflation concerns. According to preliminary data for March, inflation expectations for the year ahead rose to 4.9% from 4.3% in February. The assessment of the current situation decreased to 63.5 from 65.7 previously, and the expectations index dropped to 54.2 from 64.0. The further impact on consumption will become clear after the publication of retail sales data for February.
Sweden: labor market and fiscal policy
Data for February showed employment growth of 0.2%, while the unemployment rate dropped to 8.9%. However, this decrease is due to a decrease in the share of the economically active population and an increase in the number of disappointed workers. The decrease in the number of temporary workers indicates a weak labor market in the next 6-9 months, with a possible recovery only by the end of the year. The ruling Moderati party has announced its intention to add 11.5 billion crowns to the spring budget package, part of which will go to defense. The final amount of defense spending is likely to be determined at the NATO summit in June.
Dynamic of financial markets
Stock markets
In the absence of new threats of trade tariffs, stock markets showed growth on Friday. The Nasdaq rose 2.6%, the Russell 2000 rose 2.5%, the S&P 500 rose 2.1%, and the Dow rose 1.7%. Investors actively bought up previously affected sectors – technology, energy, banks and consumer goods. A similar trend was observed in Europe: the Stoxx 600 index gained 1.1%, while shares of banks, technology and industrial companies led the way. However, despite the growth, the overall dynamics remains weak: this is the fourth consecutive week of decline for the United States, and the second for Europe.
Currency and debt markets
The Swedish and Norwegian crowns, as well as the euro, strengthened against the US dollar and the Japanese yen in the foreign exchange market. The EUR/USD pair approached the level of 1.09, and EUR/SEK dropped to 11.00. The yield on US 10-year bonds remained at 4.30%, while German 10-year securities remained at about 2.90%.
Conclusions
This week, the key events will be the vote on the German fiscal package, negotiations between the United States and Russia, as well as decisions by central banks. The dynamics of stock markets remains unstable, while rising inflation expectations in the United States may affect the Fed's future policy. Investors continue to closely monitor macroeconomic indicators, assessing the risks to the global economy and financial markets.