Fears of a US recession in the near term have faded recently, but rate cuts are still on the agenda. The combination of a robust economy and expectations for monetary easing strike some observers as misguided, but Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller on Monday explained that the central bank is still anticipating that more easing is likely. The concession to the firmer economic data of late: the cuts will be softer, he noted. But if hawks looking for a sign that cuts were off the table, they were disappointed in Waller’s speech at Stanford University yesterday.
Daily Archives: October 15, 2024
Macro Briefing: 15 October 2024
Interest rate cuts going forward will be less aggressive, says Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller. Referring to recent economic reports, he advises that “the data is signaling that the economy may not be slowing as much as desired… While we do not want to overreact to this data or look through it, I view the totality of the data as saying monetary policy should proceed with more caution on the pace of rate cuts than was needed at the September meeting.” Meanwhile, the policy-sensitive US 2-year Treasury yield continues to trade around the 4% mark:
