US, UK, Swiss, and Japanese central bank meetings are expected this week

Last week, investors focused on the US consumer price index. According to the Labor Department report, US inflation growth has slowed down. However, investors are still very concerned as the stock market is not responding with growth. It means hedge funds are cutting their positions ahead of the Fed’s meeting.

But according to a Bank of America Corp. survey, professional market participants are still investing in stocks, betting that the Federal Reserve will not cut the QE program soon. According to a survey of Bloomberg economists, the Fed is likely to hint at its meeting this week that it will reduce its monthly asset purchases and make an official statement in November. Still, it will keep interest rates near zero level until 2022.

Australia announced that it would refuse the 2016 deal with France to build a fleet of conventional submarines. Instead, the country will build eight nuclear-powered submarines using American and British technology after concluding a trilateral security partnership. This step caused rage in France, a US, and British NATO ally, prompting it to recall its ambassadors in Washington and Canberra.

China’s manufacturing and retail sectors suffered in August, with production and sales growth reaching a one-year low, as new coronavirus outbreaks and supply disruptions threatened the country’s economic recovery. Concerns about the health of China’s economy and Beijing’s repression of tech companies continue to haunt the region, with stocks in Hong Kong decreasing by more than 3% to their lowest level in nearly 11 months.

The issue of Chinese real estate giant Evergrande and its $300 billion obligations is also open, especially considering the fact that interest on bonds should be paid on Thursday.

Central banks in the US, Japan, Great Britain, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Indonesia, Philippines, Taiwan, Brazil, South Africa, Turkey, and Hungary will hold meetings this week.