Debates to help half of U.S. voters decide between Clinton, Trump: poll
Half of America's likely voters will rely on the presidential debates to help them make their choice between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton in the Nov. 8 election, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday.
The results show the stakes for the White House rivals as they prepare to face off on Monday at Hofstra University in Long Island, New York, for their first of three one-on-one debates, a prime-time TV spectacle expected to draw a Super Bowl-sized audience of 100 million Americans.
Some 50 percent of likely voters think the debates will help inform their decision of whom to support, including 10 percent who say they are not currently leaning either way, according to the opinion poll.
Some 39 percent said the debates will not help, and 11 percent said they did not know how the debates would affect them.
In a strong signal that most viewers will also be hoping the debates bring clarity, some 72 percent of respondents said they want to see moderators point out when a candidate says something that is untrue.
Many voters are hoping to see a relatively civilized debate, after months of mutual attacks between Trump and Clinton on the campaign trail. Trump has called for Clinton to be jailed for her handling of emails as America's top diplomat. Clinton has accused Trump of racism and of being temperamentally unfit for the Oval Office.
Of those polled, 61 percent said they are not interested in those kinds of attacks.
A plurality of likely voters want to hear both Clinton and Trump talk about jobs and the economy, the poll found.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted online in English in all 50 states. It included 2,124 American adults.
BOJ's Kuroda says ready to use every possible tool to hit price goal
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, in his first speech since the BOJ's decision last week to overhaul its radical stimulus program, said the central bank stood ready to use every available tool to achieve its 2 percent inflation target.
While the BOJ would be mindful of the impact ultra-easy policy could have on banks' profits, that would not prevent it from expanding stimulus further if needed to revive Japan's economy.
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Monday the central bank would closely watch how recent yen rises could affect the country's economy and prices.
"It's basically desirable for currency rates to move stably reflecting economic fundamentals," Kuroda said in a meeting with business executives in Osaka, western Japan.
IMF urges BOJ to clarify policy guidance, strengthen communication
The Bank of Japan must continue to clarify its monetary policy guidance and strengthen communication after adopting a new policy framework, an official of the International Monetary Fund said on Monday.
IMF Japan mission chief Luc Everaert told a seminar in Tokyo that the IMF welcomed the BOJ's framework shift to target interest rates on government bonds instead of base money.
Oil prices rebound after Algeria says all options open at OPEC meeting
Crude prices rebounded on Monday after Algeria's energy minister said the day before that all options were possible for an oil output cut or freeze at this week's informal meeting of OPEC producers.
That came after prices tumbled 4 percent on Friday amid signs Saudi Arabia and Iran were making little progress in achieving preliminary agreement to freeze production.
Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will meet on the sidelines of the International Energy Forum in Algeria from Sept. 26-28, where they will discuss a possible output-limiting deal.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 rose 32 cents to $44.80 a barrel after falling $1.84, or 4 percent, in the previous session. U.S. crude gained 3 percent last week.
Reference: Reuters
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