Powell likely to signal that lower inflation is needed before Fed would cut rates

, Federal Reserve officials have turned more cautious about the prospect of interest rate cuts this year. The big question, after they end their latest policy meeting Wednesday, will be: Will they still signal rate cuts at all this year?this year to the Fed's benchmark rate , now at a 23-year high of 5.3% after 11 hikes that ended last July. Traders have sharply downgraded their expectations since 2024 began, when they had expected up to six rate cuts .

Most economists expect Powell to reinforce that message during the news conference he will hold after the Fed's meeting ends Wednesday. But he could go still further. “If that is dropped, I think it would be a much stronger signal that we have to hold rates higher for longer,” said Jonathan Pingle, chief economist at UBS.in the first three months of this year, a slowdown from the previous quarter, consumer spending grew at a robust pace, a sign that the economy will keep expanding.

On Wednesday, the Fed may also announce that it's slowing the pace at which it unwinds one of its biggest COVID-era policies: Its purchase of several trillion dollars in Treasury securities and mortgage-backed bonds, an effort to stabilize financial markets and keep longer-term interest rates low. During its meeting in March, Fed official agreed to reduce the pace of its runoff to about $65 billion a month, according to the meeting minutes.

NewsmaxPresident Joe Biden’s eating habits are no longer just the subject of Fox News host Jesse Watters’ invaluable scrutiny, after Newsmax host Eric Bolling grew increasingly angry Monday with the president eating salad at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner over the weekend.Bolling, channeling his inner Sean Hannity, concluded his opening monologue by saying that Biden isn’t fit enough for the job he holds.

Benchmark Rate Jerome Powell Rate Reductions Interest Rate Rate Increases Unemployment Rate Rate Cuts

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