Bessent: U.S. could do another SPR release to keep price down - Fox Business Network interview

At its meeting ending on 18 March 2026, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted unanimously to maintain Bank Rate at 3.75%. Conflict in the Middle East has caused a significant increase in global energy and other commodity prices, which will affect households’ fuel and utility prices and have indirect effects via businesses’ costs. Prior to this, there had been continued disinflation in domestic prices and wages. CPI inflation will be higher in the near term as a result of the new shock to the economy. Monetary policy cannot influence global energy prices but aims to ensure that the economic adjustment to them occurs in a way that achieves the 2% target sustainably. The MPC is alert to the increased risk of domestic inflationary pressures through second-round effects in wage and price-setting, the risk of which will be greater the longer higher energy prices persist. The MPC is also assessing the implications for inflation of the weakening in economic activity that is likely to result from higher energy costs. *BANK OF ENGLAND HOLDS KEY INTEREST RATE AT 3.75% IN 9-0 VOTE *BOE SAYS ALL MEMBERS 'STAND READY TO ACT' TO CONTAIN INFLATION *BOE SEES INFLATION AT OVER 3% IN FEBRUARY, NEAR 3.5% IN MARCH Bank of England votes unanimously to keep rates on hold as Iran war clouds outlook The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee has voted “unanimously” keep its benchmark interest rate on hold at 3.75% on Thursday. Before the war in Iran erupted in late February, the BOE had been expected to cut its key interest rate, known as ‘Bank Rate,’ at its March meeting, but the conflict has sent global energy prices soaring, clouding the outlook for inflation and growth. “Conflict in the Middle East has caused a significant increase in global energy and other commodity prices, which will affect households’ fuel and utility prices and have indirect effects via businesses’ costs,” the BOE said in a statement.

In the week ending March 14, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 205,000, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 213,000. The 4-week moving average was 210,750, a decrease of 750 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised down by 500 from 212,000 to 211,500. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.2 percent for the week ending March 7, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending March 7 was 1,857,000, an increase of 10,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised down by 3,000 from 1,850,000 to 1,847,000. The 4-week moving average was 1,850,500, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's av JOBLESS CLAIMS JUST BEAT — AND THAT CHANGES THE STORY U.S. initial jobless claims came in at 205,000 for the week ending March 13, 2026. That’s below the 215,000 forecast and down from 213,000 prior. What’s happening: Fewer people are filing for unemployment. Why this… US applications for jobless benefits fall to 205,000 last week as layoffs remain historically low U.S. applications for unemployment benefits fell last week, remaining in the same range of recent years despite a broadly tepid labor market. The number of Americans filing for jobless aid for the week ending March 14 fell by 8,000 from the previous week to 205,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s fewer than the 215,000 new filings analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet were expecting. Filings for unemployment benefits are viewed as a proxy for U.S. layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market. While weekly layoffs have remained in a healthy range mostly between 200,000 and 250,000 for the past few years, a number of high-profile companies have announced job cuts recently, including Morgan Stanley, Block, UPS and Amazon. Earlier this month, the Labor Department reported that U.S. employers unexpectedly cut 92,000 jobs in February, a sign that the labor market remains under strain. Revisions also slashed 69,000 jobs from December and January payrolls, nudging the unemployment rate up to 4.4%.

Manufacturing activity in the region continued to expand overall, according to the firms responding to the March Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey. The survey’s indicator for ...