U.K. Rates, German Lockdown, France Recession Risk: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Friday, Europe. Here's the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help you start the day:

• U.K. funding rates may bounce back from December's record lows as the Bank of England's optimistic comments on the economy's prospects temper speculation of further interest-rate cuts
• German Chancellor Angela Merkel said it's still too soon to ease the lockdown in Europe's largest economy even as the pandemic shows signs of easing
• The French economy is on the brink of tipping into another recession, depending on President Emmanuel Macron's next move to contain the Covid-19 pandemic
• Sweden's financial watchdog told Bloomberg News there was a danger that countries and markets might get addicted to relief measures
• U.S. financial regulators determined that the infrastructure of stock and commodity markets remained “resilient” during the recent volatility in trading typified by Gamestop Corp.
• Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Esther George said the U.S. central bank was still “far away” from achieving its goals and it was premature to start a debate on scaling back its massive bond-buying program
• The global economy's recovery risks being dampened or even derailed by the lag in coronavirus vaccinations for poorer nations relative to their wealthier peers
• China's government boosted its outlook for the nation's corn imports, adding to signs that global food prices could continue to hit multi-year highs
• India's central bank kept interest rates on hold, days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government unveiled an expansionary budget
• Australia central bank chief Philip Lowe said interest rates will remain low for “quite a while yet” with the recovery moving into a more uncertain period. He could become Australia's first central bank governor in the modern era to never raise rates

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