Next week is "Super Central Bank Week": the Federal Reserve rate decision with Waller's debut, a possible rate hike by the Bank of Japan, and China's May economic data.

Next week is "Super Central Bank Week": the Federal Reserve rate decision with Waller's debut, a possible rate hike by the Bank of Japan, and China's May economic data.

June 14 - June 22: Overview of Major Financial Events This Week (All times are Beijing Time) Main events next week: **First, the “Super Central Bank Week”**: The US Federal Reserve is expected to stay put, with the focus on new Chair Walsh’s first press conference—markets will watch whether he signals hawkish or dovish policy and if the “dot plot” will be scrapped. Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan has an 88% chance of raising rates, but Governor Kazuo Ueda will miss the meeting due to illness. Central banks in ten countries including the UK, Australia, Indonesia, and Brazil will also make frequent policy statements, further illustrating global monetary policy divergence. **Second, China’s May macroeconomic data**: China will release May social retail, industrial value-added, and home price data for 70 cities, with oil price shocks and a high base likely restraining growth. May CPI for Japan, May retail sales for the US, and the June New York Fed manufacturing index will also be published. **Third, the intersection of tech and geopolitics**: The G7 summit focuses on the Strait of Hormuz situation, OpenAI CEO visits Korea for Samsung talks, Amazon executes its largest ever Leo constellation payload launch, Suiyuan Tech and Yuexin Semiconductors sprint to the STAR Market. Also, the 2026 Lujiazui Forum will be held June 17–18. Please note: Friday, June 19, is the Dragon Boat Festival and Chinese A-shares, Hong Kong stocks, and Taiwan stocks are closed. US markets are also closed for Juneteenth. Economic Indicators & Central Bank Rate Decisions: - **Federal Reserve Rate Decision, Walsh’s Debut** On Thursday, June 18 at 2am Beijing time, the Fed will announce its June FOMC rate decision, with rates expected to remain unchanged. Around 2:30am, **new Fed Chair Walsh will hold his first press conference**, attracting attention on how he will reshape Fed-market communications and the policy signals he will deliver. Potential changes under discussion include: **shortening the FOMC statement, scrapping the dot plot, and reducing press conference frequency.** - **Bank of Japan Rate Decision, Ueda Absents due to Illness** The Bank of Japan holds its meeting June 15–16. **Governor Ueda is hospitalized and will miss the meeting—the first absence of a BOJ governor since 1998. Expectations for a rate hike are at 88%, and the absence is not expected to affect the outcome.** Deputy Governor Shinichi Uchida will host the June 16 post-meeting press conference. Nomura warns this may make future BOJ policy communication “extremely complicated.” Whether pro-easing PM Sanae Takaichi will take advantage to influence the central bank is a new market focus. Also, Friday June 19, BOJ will release minutes for the April monetary policy meeting. - **UK, Australia, Brazil, Indonesia Central Bank Policy Rates** Next week, **Bank of England, Reserve Bank of Australia** (RBA), Central Bank of Brazil, Ukraine, Philippines, Indonesia, Switzerland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden will announce rate decisions. The RBA is expected to keep rates at 4.35% on June 16. Bank of England expected to hold rates at 3.75% on June 18, despite inflation pressures. Emerging markets: June 17, Brazil expected to cut rates by 25 bp; June 18, Indonesia and Philippines expected to hike by 50 bp each to 6% and 5% respectively, to counter currency depreciation and inflation. - **China May Social Retail, Industrial Value Added, 70-city Home Prices Data** On June 16, China will release May social retail, industrial value added, real estate investment, and 70-city home price data. State Council will hold a press conference at 10am to brief on national economic performance in May. Shenwan Hongyuan Securities expects high oil prices and inflation will hit domestic consumption demand, with a potential drop in retail and industrial growth rates. - **Japan May CPI** June 19, Japan will release May CPI data. Bloomberg forecasts, driven by higher fresh food prices and removal of energy subsidies, headline inflation annual rate will accelerate from April’s 1.4% to 1.6%, with core-core index remaining high at 1.9%. Financial Events: - **Dragon Boat Festival Holiday—China A-shares, Hong Kong, and US markets closed** Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges will be closed from Friday, June 19 to Sunday, June 21 for Dragon Boat Festival, reopening Monday, June 22. Hong Kong and Taiwan markets will also be closed June 19. US Juneteenth is a federal holiday; major markets including NYSE and Nasdaq will be closed all day. - **G7 Summit in France** The 52nd G7 summit will be held June 15–17 in Evian-les-Bains, France; France presides. **Leaders are expected to urge US President Trump to support a Europe-led mission to clear mines in the Strait of Hormuz.** - **OpenAI CEO Visits South Korea, Possible AI Cooperation Talks** Per Yonhap News, **OpenAI CEO Sam Altman will arrive in Korea on June 14, and attend a roundtable on June 15 with Samsung DX division executives and staff, and also meet Kakao CEO Jung Shin-ah to discuss deepening bilateral cooperation.** This visit is Altman’s first back to Korea in eight months, following Jensen Huang’s early June trip. - **Amazon Plans Leo Europe 3 Launch Mission** Amazon will execute its “Leo Europe 3” launch mission at 7:53am US Eastern time, Wednesday, June 17. This mission uses the upgraded P160C booster-equipped Ariane 6 rocket to deploy 36 satellites for its constellation, up from previous 32, marking Amazon Leo constellation’s largest ever payload launch with Arianespace. - **UK Makerfield Political By-election, Burnham Eyes Labour Leadership** A by-election in Makerfield, Greater Manchester will be held June 18, with Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham expected to win and return to Westminster. Xinhua reports Burnham announced his intention to challenge Prime Minister Starmer for the Labour Party leadership. Asset managers including BNP Paribas warn the by-election may trigger a new wave of volatility in Britain’s $3 trillion bond market. - **Domestic GPU “Four Little Dragons”—Suiyuan Tech IPO on STAR Market** Shanghai Stock Exchange will hold its 37th listing review meeting on June 15 to review Suiyuan Tech’s IPO. - **Yuexin Semiconductor IPO Review June 15** Shenzhen Stock Exchange will hold its 34th listing review meeting on June 15 to review Yuexin Semiconductor’s IPO. - **Hesai Tech and 6 others to join HKEX Tech 100 Index** Hong Kong Exchange announced biannual Tech 100 index reshuffle: 7 tech stocks including Yangtze Optical Fibre, Dipper Tech, Wisdom Gather, Hesai Tech, etc. will be added; 7 will be removed. Changes take effect Monday, June 15. - **Yuanjie Tech added to STAR 50, Zhaoyi Innovation to SSE 50** STAR 50 index will add Huahong, Yuanjie Tech, Moore Threads, Muxi Co.; SSE 50 will add TBEA, Shengyi Tech, China Aluminum, Huatai Securities, Zhaoyi Innovation, after market close June 12, effective Monday, June 15. - **Europe’s Largest Tech Event—VivaTech 2026** VivaTech 2026 will be held June 17–20 in Paris, focusing on economic returns from AI. - **2026 Lujiazui Forum June 17–18** Per Securities Times, the 2026 Lujiazui Forum theme is “Financial Development and Cooperation under Global Governance Initiative: New Vision, New Challenges, New Opportunities,” June 17–18. Guests include central financial authorities, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Hungary Central Bank, Hong Kong Financial Secretary, City of London, World Bank, Shanghai and Hong Kong Exchanges, and major domestic and foreign financial institutions. - **China Auto Association hosts ‘2026 International Auto and Supply Chain Expo (Hong Kong)’ June 18–22** Risk warning and disclaimer: The market has risks and investment must be cautious. This article does not constitute personal investment advice and has not considered your specific investment goals, financial situation, or needs. You should assess whether any opinions, views, or conclusions in this article fit your circumstances. Investing based on this article is at your own risk.