International news on 18 October 2017
Fed Governor Jerome Powell is being tipped as the next head of the Federal Reserve when current chair Janet Yellen’s tenure expires in February, according to a Reuters poll of some 40 economists. Just over half of poll takers see Powell as next in line as he is the candidate of continuity. “The most continuity between Fed chairs would be Yellen to Powell. Given where we are in the tightening cycle some consistency would be welcomed by financial markets,” said Ryan Sweet at Moody’s Analytics. 13 economists believe that former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh is the next likely candidate.
Among the handful of other international news headlines worth noting on a relatively quiet news morning:
- Daesh threatened Russia on Tuesday that it would attack the 2018 World Cup Final, according to the Daily Mail.
- The terror group, meanwhile, has been dislodged from Raqqa by US-backed militias, which effectively (but not officially) declared victory in the battle yesterday, according to Reuters.
- Israel will not resume peace talks with the Palestinian government until Hamas “agrees to a series of conditions it is unlikely to accept,” including officially recognizing Israeli statehood and disarming, the Associated Press reports.
- A journalist investigating corruption in Malta was killed in a car bomb on Monday,according to The Guardian.