According to Keith Wade, Chief Economist & Strategist at Schroders, despite the market reaction, this move comes out of weakness and also raises the risk that China may retaliate with a further depreciation of its currency. If so, we will have entered a new phase in the currency wars where countries fight over a limited amount of global growth, an outcome which does not bode well for risk assets.

According to Simon Ward, Chief Economist, Henderson Global Investors, the Bank of Japan's surprise decision to introduce a negative interest rate on the top tier of banks' reserve holdings recalls the famous Beyond the Fringe sketch in which Peter Cook's squadron leader character calls for a futile gesture to raise the tone of the war.

Sebastian Radcliffe, manager of the Jupiter North American Income Fund, comments on the decision by the US Federal Reserve to increase interest rates for the first time since 2006

We live in extraordinary times. The distortions caused by quantitative easing and near zero interest rate policies have been felt in just about every asset class...

For some time, commentators have been itching to call the top of the great bond bull market. They point to improving economic conditions in the developed economies, a tightening US labour market and a long-awaited normalisation of interest rate policy after many years of extraordinary stimulus as evidence for their case.