Chicago Fed’s Evans: Monetary Policy ‘Wrongfooted, Needs Substantial Adjustment’
– Expects Inflation to Drop; Still ‘Well Anchored at 2%’ – ‘No Extra Monetary Restraint Needed to Bring Inflation Down’ By Steven K. Beckner (MaceNews) – Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans predicted Friday that inflation will fall from its current rapid pace and said he doesn’t think the Fed will need to be […]
<strong>FOMC Minutes Show Desire to Start Monetary Firming but Not Overly Aggressively</strong>
– Rate Hikes Would Be At ‘Faster Pace” if Inflation Doesn’t Moderate – Appropriate Pace of Rate Hikes Will Be Reassessed “At Each Meeting” By Steven K. Beckner (MaceNews) – Federal Reserve officials saw a need to start withdrawing monetary stimulus to curb inflation within the context of a “strong” labor market at their Jan. […]
Future of US Inflation Depends on Shelter Costs Flywheel
By Denny Gulino WASHINGTON (MaceNews) – Last month’s strong rate of increase in consumer prices reported Wednesday was the same, and for some major categories less, than in the previous month, suggesting that mathematical base effects will force indicated inflation to decelerate later this year. Most significantly, shelter costs, that contribute a third of all […]
BOJ Moves to Defend 10-Year JGB Yield’s 0.25% Ceiling as Bonds Sold on Fed Tightening Mode
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – The Bank of Japan sent a clear message to financial markets late on Thursday that it is not following other major central banks in shifting gears toward tightening by announcing that it is conducting an unlimited fixed-rate long bond buying operation at 0.25%, the upper limit of its guidance range. […]
Update: Bank of Canada’s Macklem Sees Multiple Rate Hikes But Not on Autopilot
— Adds governor comments from news conference, background at bottom By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem on Wednesday stressed that the bank’s latest view that domestic interest rates are “on a rising path” does not mean that the bank’s policymakers would automatically keep raising rates once they embark on tightening. […]
Cleveland Fed’s Mester: Should Reduce Balance Sheet Soon, Faster Than Last Time
By Steven K. Beckner (MaceNews) – Expressing heightened concern about inflation, Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank President Loretta Mester called Wednesday for an early and relatively rapid firming of monetary policy. Mester, a voting member of the Fed’s policy making Federal Open Market Committee this year, said she favors starting to raise the federal funds in […]
BOE Governor Andrew Bailey Takes Heavy Fire After Calling for Pay Restraint
— UK unions take aim after Thursday’s rate hike— MPC members Pill, Broadbent urge gradual tightening LONDON (MaceNews) – Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey suffered the brickbats of UK trade unions after suggesting that workers rein in demands for pay hikes even as inflation hovers at a three-decade high. “We do need to see […]
ECB Sounds More Hawkish Note But Leaves Policy Unchanged
— President Christine Lagarde Acknowledges that Inflation is More Likely to Overshoot Target (MaceNews) – The European Central Bank “will not be complacent” about record-high eurozone inflation, a more hawkish stance from ECB President and long-term dove Christine Lagarde Thursday. “Compared to December, inflation risks are tilted to the upside, particularly in the near term,” […]
Bank of England Lifts Rates; Sends Hawkish Signals
— Decision was a “close call,” says governor, as four members argue for a steeper increase LONDON (MaceNews) – The Bank of England lifted interest rates for the second straight meeting — the first consecutive hikes since 2004 —but surprised the markets with a decidedly hawkish outlook, according to minutes of the February Monetary Policy Committee […]
KC Fed’s George: FOMC Needs to Move ‘Deliberately’ To Raise Federal Funds Rate
Funds Rate ‘Far Away’ From ‘Normal’ Monetary Policy ‘Out of Sync’ With Economic Outlook By Steven K. Beckner (MaceNews) – Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Esther George said Monday that the Fed needs to move “deliberately” to withdraw the unprecedented monetary stimulus adopted to counter the Covid lockdown-induced recession. George, who is voting this […]