For the Bank of Japan and US Federal Reserve, what a difference a week makes. As 2023 ended, the BOJ was almost universally seen as “tapering” on the way to exiting quantitative easing (QE). Governor Kazuo Ueda’s team was viewed as setting the stage for a pivot that would send the yen skyrocketing. Markets were convinced, too, that Fed Chairman Jerome Powell would be easing three times or more this year. Perhaps more as inflation pressures recede thanks to the highest US yields in 17 years undermining gross domestic product (GDP). These rather pragmatic predictions have collided head-on with 2024. First came a 7.6 ... (full story)