BIS central bankers’ speeches  1  4. Fears of further weakening of the Chinese economy, its falling equity market and the depreciation of its currency loom large over global economic prospects. In January, capital outflows from China triggered sell-offs across both Advanced Economies (AEs) and Emerging Market & Developing Economies (EMDEs), exacerbating currency declines and heightening volatilities.
Crude oil prices fell to multi-year lows to below $ 30 per barrel. The risk-off sentiment was reflected in the sharp surge in the prices of gold and the US treasuries and in the unwinding of carry trades undertaken with Euro and Japanese Yen as funding currencies, leading to their unexpected strengthening.