The United States Federal Reserve (Fed) will announce its monetary policy decision and publish its revised Summary of Economic Projections (SEP), known as the dot plot, after its September policy meeting on Wednesday. Market participants widely anticipate the US central bank will cut its benchmark interest rate for the first time since last December, lowering it to a range of 4%-4.25%. The CME FedWatch Tool shows that investors see only about a 6% chance of a larger rate cut, while pricing in about an 80% chance of a 75 basis point (bps) cut for the remainder of the year. This means the...
New York Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams indicated on Wednesday that interest rates could decrease at some point, but emphasized that upcoming economic data will determine if a rate cut is appropriate at the September 16-17 meeting. "Every meeting is, from my perspective, live" for a change in the benchmark policy rate, Williams stated during a CNBC interview. He added that "risks are more in balance. We are going to just have to see how the data play out." Before the next Federal Reserve meeting, policymakers will receive fresh jobs data and new consumer price inflation...
Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook will file a lawsuit to prevent President Donald Trump from firing her, a lawyer for the embattled central bank official said on Tuesday, kicking off what could be a protracted legal fight over the White House's effort to shape U.S. monetary policy. "His attempt to fire her, based solely on a referral letter, lacks any factual or legal basis. We will be filing a lawsuit challenging this illegal action," Cook's lawyer, prominent Washington attorney Abbe Lowell, said in a statement. The statement was issued a day after Trump said he would fire Cook, the...
Federal Reserve (Fed) Bank of Dallas President Lorie Logan mused about making key policy adjustments at the Fed on Monday, stressing the need for more effective policy communication.The US has more room to reduce reserves.Responding to banks' increased short-run demand for reserves is a recipe for an ever-expanding central bank balance sheet.As reserve levels drop, preferable for the Fed to seek to meet lower long-run bank demand for reserves rather than the higher short-run demand.Fed balance sheet should hold primarily treasuries in the long run.I was encouraged to see the use of the...
The US economy is slowing, according to a monthly index released Monday, increasing the likelihood that policymakers will cut interest rates next month. The Chicago Fed's National Activity Index fell slightly to minus 0.19 in July from a downwardly revised minus 0.18 in June. A reading below zero indicates slower growth than the long-term average. Employment indicators remained negative on the index, a fresh sign of fragility in the US labor market. This weakness is one of the main reasons for a rate cut at the Fed's policy meeting next month. Central bank Chairman Jerome Powell last week...
Investors cheered Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's Jackson Hole address, which gave a green light to buy risky assets on the hope the central bank is ready to cut rates, but took his dovish message with a note of caution as they see a risk of stagflation ahead and worry markets are over-optimistic. In his final address as Fed chair at the Jackson Hole, Wyoming, economic symposium, Powell hinted at a September interest rate cut but stopped short of committing, striking a careful balance between mounting job-market risks and lingering inflation worries. The speech on Friday came amid...
Asia-Pacific markets traded higher, tracking Wall Street gains overnight.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.41% after hitting a fresh record high on Thursday, while the Topix added 0.61%. South...
Both the STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 hovered around the flatline on Friday, as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of further developments in trade talks between US President Trump and Chinese...
The United States has rejected India's request for consultations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) regarding Washington's 50% tariffs on copper and copper derivative products, arguing that the...