French banking group BNP Paribas announced on Monday the appointment of Guneet Dhingra as head of rates strategy in the US and James Egelhof as chief economist for the US in its market strategy division.

The United States has become a crucial growth driver for European banks, including BNP Paribas, as they seek to expand their presence around the world. Customers in the region face a challenging macroeconomic landscape, with the US Federal Reserve striving to lower benchmark interest rates against a backdrop of mixed economic signals.

Guneet Dhingra joins BNP Paribas from Morgan Stanley, where he spent 16 years, most recently as Head of US Rates Strategy.

In his new role, he will be responsible for the French bank's hedging of US interest rate products, including Treasuries and swaps.

James Egelhof, who most recently headed global fundamental research at hedge fund Jane Street, will oversee BNP Paribas' coverage of the US economy, including growth, inflation and monetary policy forecasts.

Previously, he spent ten years at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, where he led a multi-asset quantitative research team focused on monetary policy strategy and global market analysis.

"The appointments of Guneet and James will strengthen our ability to anticipate and respond to market developments," said Luigi Speranza, Head of Markets 360 and Chief Economist at BNP Paribas.

BNP Paribas said the two newcomers will report to Calvin Tse, who has been appointed Head of Macro Strategy for the Americas and whose remit has been expanded to include the US economy.

(Reported by Manya Saini in Bangalore and Lananh Nguyen in New York; French version by Bertrand De Meyer, edited by Augustin Turpin)