The Federal Reserve’s much awaited interest-rate meeting this week is just one of a panoply by global central banks whose policies are increasingly diverging as economies respond in different ways to the coronavirus crisis.
An anticipated decision in Washington on Wednesday to stay the course with an easing stance for the duration of the American summer may only underscore how what was once synchronized stimulus across the world is evolving into a monetary kaleidoscope.
Including the U.S., rate-setting on five continents, for a quarter of the Group of 20 and covering more than a third of global economic output, is likely to show how some institutions are more concerned about inflation taking hold, while others would dearly like to see that happen, to a degree at least.
In Norway on Thursday, officials may reiterate the need for a cycle of monetary tightening to begin there later this year, while Brazil is poised to increase its benchmark the previous day. Others, from Japan to Turkey to Switzerland, will probably keep their policies unchanged, albeit for different reasons and at highly contrasting settings.
