Author: Matthew Boesler
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5 questions about the Fed’s $4.5 trillion balance sheet
The Federal Reserve is getting ready to “normalize” the size of its $4.5 trillion balance sheet. A lot is at stake. Investors and traders are anxious for information about how the central bank intends to pull back. “There are so many different parameters by which they could set this process,” said Tom Simons, a senior…
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Trump era may mean Fed-day fireworks despite better guidance
U.S. Federal Reserve officials were on a roll communicating their intentions to financial markets until December, when even a well-advertised interest-rate hike triggered a big sell-off in the bond market. As Fed policymakers gather this week, a question for investors is whether that was an isolated incident or the start of a more turbulent cycle.…
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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…
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Fed sees modest economic growth amid ‘slight’ inflation
The U.S. economy grew at a modest pace in July and August as a strong labor market failed to put much upward pressure on wages and prices, a Federal Reserve report showed. “In general, expectations of wage growth for the coming months were modest” and price increases “remained slight overall,” according to the Fed’s latest…