The Bank of Japan is likely to continue its soft monetary policy this year. Oil continues to decline

The US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Monday that she sees an opportunity to avoid a US recession, with inflation falling significantly and the economy remaining strong given the strength of the US labor market.

Shares of Dell Technologies Inc (DELL) fell by 4.3% yesterday after it reported cutting 6,650 jobs, or about 5% of the global workforce.

Yesterday ECB officials said with one voice that ECB rate hikes are far from over, despite lower inflation in the region. Policymakers explained that the risk of excessive policy tightening is negligible compared to the risk of doing too little. Analysts forecast a 0.5% rate hike from the ECB at the March meeting.

The Turkish lira has fallen to an all-time low under pressure from geopolitical risks as several major earthquakes hit the region, causing massive destruction and casualties. According to some reports, more than 4,300 people have died in Turkey and Syria, and more than 20,000 have been injured.

Oil prices rose slightly in choppy trading on Monday. Oil traders are evaluating the prospects of a recovery in demand from China. The International Energy Agency (IEA) expects China to account for half of global oil demand growth this year. However, a sharp increase in US jobs on Friday heightened expectations that the US Federal Reserve will raise rates more than previously planned, which could curb economic growth and reduce the need for fuel.

Asian markets were also down yesterday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 (JP225) decreased by 0.24%, China’s FTSE China A50 (CHA50) lost 1.74%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng (HK50) ended the day down by 0.65%, India’s NIFTY 50 (IND50) fell by 0.31%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 (AU200) ended the day down by 0.28%.

The Nikkei newspaper reported citing anonymous sources in the government and the ruling party, that deputy governor of the Bank of Japan Masayoshi Amamiya is nominated for the post of the next governor. According to Saxo strategists, Amamiya is considered the most “dovish” of the contenders, dashing hopes that a normalization of Bank of Japan policy could happen soon.

Geopolitical tensions between the US and China have escalated again. The US shot down a Chinese balloon off the coast of South Carolina that had entered US airspace. The US Department of Defense released a statement over the weekend stating that Chinese balloons had entered US airspace three times under the previous administration. This news is likely to affect sentiment as markets were hoping for a quick recovery in demand from the Chinese economy in February.