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Experts warn rents will climb in 2023, Biden tells oil companies not to use the hurricane to price gouge, and China’s yuan plunges near record lows against the dollar. Plus, is the global recession the fault of the United States?
Median rents in America’s 50 largest cities fell by $10 per month in August, the first drop since last November, according to the latest data from realtor.com. However, the organization’s chief economist says the one-month decline isn’t the sign of a trend and expects rent price growth to remain elevated well into 2023. Rental demand will remain strong due to the rising costs of home ownership and interest rate hikes, CNBC reported.
On Wednesday, ahead of Hurricane Ian making landfall in what has now become a disaster situation in Florida, President Joe Biden warned the oil industry not to use the storm and its aftermath as an excuse to raise prices, NBC reported.
“Do not,” Biden said, “let me repeat, do not use this as an excuse to raise gasoline prices or gouge the American people.”
“America is watching,” Biden added. “The industry should do the right thing.”
The president said the hurricane “provides no excuse for price increases at the pump,” warning that if it happens, he will ask federal officials to determine “whether price gouging is going on.”
China’s yuan fell against the US dollar on the offshore market, dropping near a record low of 7.2674 on Wednesday. Shockingly, the trend continued with the currency falling further on Thursday as it slumped to 7.189 per dollar. Other major currencies around the world continue to tumble following aggressive interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve, CNN reported. The fall came despite the People’s Bank of China warning traders on Wednesday against betting on the currency’s continued depreciation.
Experts say the aggressive moves by the Fed–namely, raising interest rates by three-quarters of a percentage point at three consecutive meetings and signaling more large hikes are coming–are creating financial pressure globally.
“We’re seeing the Fed being as aggressive as it has been since the early 1980s. They’re willing to tolerate higher unemployment and a recession,” Chris Turner, global head of markets at ING, told CNN. “That’s not good for international growth.”
Central banks have mirrored the Fed’s moves in the past week, raising rates in the UK, Switzerland, Norway, Nigeria, Indonesia, South Africa, Taiwan, and the Philippines.
World Bank warns of global recession
The World Bank recently cautioned that the hiking of interest rates by central banks across the world is increasing the risk of a global recession in 2023.
