DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Asia markets largely lower as investors assess China inflation data, await Japan GDP print
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-13 | by ( Lim Hui Jie | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Federal Reserve regional presidents Neel Kashkari of Minneapolis and Austan Goolsbee of Chicago said they are taking a patient approach to monetary policy as they weigh surprisingly strong inflation data this year. Let's get a lot more data to see if this inflation is going to continue or if it's stalling," Kashkari said during a joint live interview on CNBC. "We are all committed to getting inflation back" to the Fed's 2% goal. Goolsbee noted the rapid disinflation that occurred in 2023 and said he is hopeful that can resume following the sticky upward trend seen so far this year. Or did we kind of use up all of our good luck and this bump of the beginning of the year is actually a sign of overheating?"

Persons: Neel Kashkari, Kashkari, Goolsbee, Jeff Cox Organizations: Reserve, CNBC Locations: Minneapolis, Chicago

The Federal Reserve is widely expected to hold rates steady Wednesday, but the central bankers will give an update on their economic outlook with the summary of economic projections, which includes one key chart that traders will have an eye on. The so-called "dot plot" that charts the projected move in the Fed funds rate and the press conference of Chair Powell will give investors a clue as to what happens in the November meeting and into 2024. "I think that they will keep that bias towards higher rates in there and indicate that they are willing to raise the funds rate further if the data start to show that either inflation is not slowing as they expect it to, or if the labor market remains too tight," said Gus Faucher, chief economist at PNC Financial Services Group. Read more about the meeting here. — Jeff Cox, Jesse Pound

Persons: Powell, Gus Faucher, Read, — Jeff Cox, Jesse Pound Organizations: Federal Reserve, PNC Financial Services

☆ Asia-Pacific shares poised to rise as BOJ Kuroda’s final meeting comes into spotlight
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday that he hasn't made up his mind about what the central bank will do regarding interest rates when it meets later in March. Speaking to the House Financial Services Committee, Powell said he and his colleagues will be assessing a raft of incoming inflation data, including reports next week on consumer and producer prices. The larger point, though, is we are not on a preset path and we will be guided by the incoming data and the evolving outlook." Powell shook markets Wednesday when he said he anticipates that if the inflation data remain hot, he expects rates will go higher than expected and at a faster pace. Markets now expect the Fed to raise its benchmark borrowing rate by 0.5 percentage point when the Federal Open Market Committee meets March 21-22.

☆ Asia-Pacific markets fall as investors weigh risks of more hikes ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Jihye Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Fed Governor Christopher Waller on Wednesday talked tough on inflation, warning that the fight is not over and could result in higher interest rates than markets are anticipating. Consequently, he said the Fed needs to maintain its current plan of action, which has seen eight interest rate hikes since March 2022. "We are seeing that effort begin to pay off, but we have farther to go," Waller told the Arkansas State University Agribusiness Conference in prepared remarks. "And, it might be a long fight, with interest rates higher for longer than some are currently expecting. But I will not hesitate to do what is needed to get my job done."

☆ Asia-Pacific markets set to rise as trade resumes after Lunar New Year holidays
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Jihye Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Federal Reserve officials next week are almost certain to approve another deceleration in interest rate hikes while also discussing when to stop the increases altogether, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee is set to convene Jan. 31-Feb. 1, with markets pricing in almost a 100% chance of a quarter-point increase in the central bank's benchmark rate. Most prominently, Fed Governor Christopher Waller said Friday he sees a 0.25 percentage point increase as the preferred move for the upcoming meeting. A series of rate hikes begun in March 2022 has resulted in increases of 4.25 percentage points. Market pricing is currently indicating quarter-point hikes at the next two meetings, a period of no action, and then up to a half-point reduction by the end of 2023, according to CME Group data.

☆ Asia-Pacific markets, Fed minutes, inflation, PMI, Singapore retail, Caixin services
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The Federal Reserve released the minutes from its Dec. 13-14 meeting, which showed central bank officials expect rates to be higher for "some time." "Participants generally observed that a restrictive policy stance would need to be maintained until the incoming data provided confidence that inflation was on a sustained downward path to 2 percent, which was likely to take some time," the meeting summary stated. "In view of the persistent and unacceptably high level of inflation, several participants commented that historical experience cautioned against prematurely loosening monetary policy." "A number of participants emphasized that it would be important to clearly communicate that a slowing in the pace of rate increases was not an indication of any weakening of the Committee's resolve to achieve its price-stability goal or a judgment that inflation was already on a persistent downward path," the minutes said.

Search resuls for: "— Jeff Cox"

6 mentions found