Author: Jeanna Smialek
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Fed refrains from rate hike while maintaining sunny outlook
Federal Reserve officials left interest rates unchanged while signaling they’ll look past a recent deceleration in U.S. economic growth. “The committee views the slowing in growth during the first quarter as likely to be transitory,” the Federal Open Market Committee said in a statement Wednesday following a two-day meeting in Washington. “Near-term risks to the…
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Inflation is back, but so are its risks
From goods leaving the factory floor in China’s industrial towns to gasoline at the pump in Europe and America, prices that stayed low for years are going up. So that’s a good sign, right? After a period of central bankers fretting about deflation and resorting to unconventional techniques, the easy answer is “yes.” But whether…
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Yellen sees economic gains boosting workers in job market
Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said economic gains are finally raising living standards for most Americans as a healthy labor market contributes to higher wages. “After years of a slow economic recovery, you are entering the strongest job market in nearly a decade,” Yellen told a class of graduating students at the University of Baltimore…
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Fed raises rates, boosts outlook for borrowing costs in 2017
Federal Reserve officials raised interest rates for the first time this year and forecast a steeper path for borrowing costs in 2017, saying inflation expectations have increased “considerably” and suggesting the labor market is tightening. The Federal Open Market Committee cited “realized and expected labor market conditions and inflation” in increasing its benchmark rate a…
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Fed minutes seen setting up December even before election bump
Minutes of the Federal Reserve’s November policy meeting are likely to confirm that officials were creeping closer to their first interest-rate increase in a year before the Nov. 8 election, and developments since have only served to bolster the case for a hike. The record of the Nov. 1-2 meeting, during which policymakers left the…
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No-go November may show Fed ducking chance to prove pet mantras
The Federal Reserve looks poised to forgo a chance to prove its favorite points. Officials have three mantras: Every meeting is “live” for an interest rate move, policy is data dependent and decisions aren’t politically motivated. They could match words with deeds by raising rates this week, but they probably won’t. A rate hike at…
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Fed’s regional bank boards ramp up the call for a rate increase
The boards of directors at nine of the 12 regional Federal Reserve banks last month sought an increase in the rate on direct loans from the Fed to 1.25 percent from 1 percent, minutes released by the U.S. central bank Tuesday show. The Atlanta Fed joined the calls for an increase in the discount rate,…
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Split among Fed officials leaves September rate outlook murky
The more that Federal Reserve officials speak, the more confused investors and economists become. Fed Governor Daniel Tarullo repeated his cautious assessment of the economy during an interview Friday on CNBC television, while Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren argued there was a reasonable case for gradual tightening. Their remarks, ahead of the Sept. 20-21 meeting…