VENTURE CAPITAL POST

Japan's consumer inflation was expected to edge up slightly in March as oil prices stabilized and consumer goods prices stayed steady, calling the Bank of Japan's bullish forecasts into question.

U.S. import prices fell in March as rising petroleum costs were offset by declining prices for other goods, a sign of muted inflation that supports the view the Federal Reserve will probably not raise interest rates in June.

The Federal Reserve will have a "strong" case to hike U.S. interest rates in June, a hawkish Fed official said on Tuesday, dismissing recently weak economic data as transitory and perhaps due to unseasonable weather.

Takahide Kiuchi often appears a lone voice of dissent on the Bank of Japan board as his proposals to change key elements of its massive monetary stimulus are consistently voted down, but two years into the policy he is looking increasingly prescient.

Japan's industrial output fell in February at the fastest pace in eight months due to declines in production of machinery, cars and electronics in a worrying sign that domestic demand could be faltering.

The state of the U.S. labor market in March will consume economists and investors in the week leading up to Easter, adding to the seesaw debate over when the Federal Reserve will spring its first interest rate hike.

Euro zone businesses ramped up activity this month, just as the European Central Bank starts printing money to spur growth and inflation, while a slowdown among Chinese factories has fueled calls for more stimulus there.

British inflation vanished last month, hitting zero for the first time on record, official figures showed on Tuesday. The annual rate of consumer price inflation dropped to zero percent, from 0.3 percent in January, the Office for National Statistics said, keeping a rate rise by the Bank of England firmly off the table for now.

Markets still digesting an unexpectedly cautious message from the Federal Reserve will get more food for thought this week with U.S. inflation data and potentially rising risks of a Greek exit from the euro zone.

A rift is emerging between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his hand-picked central bank boss on how to fix Japan's tattered finances, which could blunt the impact of the "Abenomics" stimulus policies they have worked together to prosecute.

The Bank of Japan is set to maintain its massive stimulus program on Tuesday and signal its conviction that a steady economic recovery will help achieve its ambitious price target without immediate, additional monetary easing.

For a world economy coming to terms with a soaring dollar and a plunge in oil prices, this week will be all about the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy meeting and its intentions on interest rates.

Forget the 2013 "taper tantrum." U.S. stock markets are in the midst of a "'patient' panic" ahead of Wednesday's Federal Reserve statement, when many investors expect a change in the Fed's language that would send the clearest signal yet that a rate hike is coming soon.

When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the United States this week to take a tough line against Iran, he argued that world powers could always push for a better nuclear deal because the Islamic Republic was vulnerable to low oil prices.

China should remain flexible on M2 growth expectations and not be overly concerned about meeting numerical targets, People's Bank of China chief Zhou Xiaochuan told a news conference, the official Shanghai Securities News reported.