Stock markets tumbled, the pound crashed against the dollar and
oil prices slumped Friday on growing recession fears after central
banks this week ramped up interest rates to fight decades-high
inflation. With price rises showing no solid sign of letting up, monetary
policymakers have gone on the offensive, warning that short-term
hits to economies are less painful than the long-term effects of not
acting. The Federal Reserve's decision Wednesday to lift borrowing
costs by 0.75 percentage points for a third successive meeting was
followed by a warning that more big rises were in the pipeline and
that rates would likely come down only in 2024. There were similar
moves by central banks in other countries including Britain, Sweden,
Norway, Switzerland, the Philippines and Indonesia -- all pointing to
a dark outlook for markets. Wall Street extended losses Friday while
European equities sank in afternoon deals and Asia finished lower.
"A negative end to the week in Asia, and Europe has quickly followed
as the prospect of much more tightening and a recession weighs on
sentiment," said Craig Erlam, analyst at trading platform OANDA. In a
sign that recession expectations are rising, the 10-year US Treasury
yield jumped to its highest level in a decade. The UK
10-year yield struck an 11-year high on Friday.