Democrats retain their majority in the US Senate. The inflation rate in Germany showed a new record

The US Federal Reserve may consider slowing the rate hikes at its next meeting. Still, Federal Reserve Chairman Christopher Waller said Sunday that it should not be seen as “easing” its commitment to lower inflation. According to analysts, markets should now pay attention to the end point of rate hikes rather than the pace of each move.

The midterm elections in the US indicate that the Democrats retain control of the Senate. They now have 50 seats against 49 for Republicans. Democratic leaders in Congress on Sunday promised to tackle the national debt ceiling in the coming weeks, saying their party’s election victory gives them leverage. The US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said they would act as long as Democrats control both houses.

Germany’s inflation rate rose from 10% to 10.4% year-over-year, the highest since Germany’s reunification. Huge increases in energy prices continue to be the main cause of high inflation. In addition to rising prices for all types of energy due to the war in Ukraine and the energy crisis in Europe, supply disruptions and significant price increases in the preceding stages of the economic process are also affecting the inflation rate.

UK GDP fell sharply by 0.6% in the third quarter (with expectations of -0.1%). Analysts predict that this is the beginning of a recession for the UK and expect GDP to fall 2% by summer. However, much depends on how the government’s energy support develops during this period. As winter approaches, analysts expect more problems in manufacturing, construction, and industrial issues. But much will depend on Thursday’s budget announcement this week.

The EU Commission predicts that Eurozone quarterly GDP will contract in the fourth quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023. As for consumer prices, the European Commission believes that inflation in the Eurozone will begin to decline next year, reaching an annualized rate of 7.0%.

Oil prices rose nearly 1% on Monday, continuing Friday’s gains as China eased some of its strict COVID-19 restrictions, raising hopes for a rebound in economic activity and demand from the world’s largest oil importer.

Asian markets mostly rose last week. Japan’s Nikkei 225 (JP225) gained 3.25% over the week, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng (HK50) jumped by 8.07%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 (AU200) was up by 3.85%.

Annual Core Consumer Inflation surpassed the Bank of Japan’s target of 2% for the sixth straight month as the weak yen, partly driven by the central bank’s low-interest rate policy, pushed up import prices and household living costs. Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda has repeatedly said that the central bank should refrain from adjusting the YCC until its 2% inflation target is sustainably achieved and accompanied by wage increases. According to a key government commission spokesman, the Bank of Japan should steer a course toward policy normalization over the long term.

In the commodities market, futures on palladium (+11.28%), cocoa (+9.38%), platinum (+8.66%), copper (+6.77%), gold (+5.82%), silver (+4.86%), and sugar (+4.7%) showed the biggest gains by the end of the week. Futures on natural gas (-7.78%), orange juice (-5.42%), WTI oil (-4.05%), wheat (-4.01%), coffee (-3.98%), gasoline (-3.86%), corn (-3.45%), and Brent oil (-2.85%) showed the biggest drop.