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WASHINGTON, June 22 (Reuters) - U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday defended the likely need for further interest rate increases despite the possible impact on jobs. "It is working families who suffer most directly and quickly from inflation," Powell responded, adding that Fed officials at this point feel "it will be appropriate to raise rates again this year, and perhaps twice, assuming the economy performs as expected." But Powell also elaborated on the Fed's approach in coming months as policymakers debate how much further rates need to rise. "We moved very, very quickly when we had to move quickly," with rates moving higher by 75 basis point per meeting at one point, Powell said. But now "we're at least close to where we think our destination is...and it only makes common sense to move...at a careful pace," Powell said, with rates held steady at the June meeting.

Persons: Jerome Powell, Powell, Sherrod Brown, ” Brown, Howard Schneider, Ann Saphir, Andrea Ricci Organizations: . Federal, U.S . Congress, Ohio Democratic, Banking Committee, Thomson Locations: Ohio

☆ The message top corporate CFOs are sending directly to Fed presidents isn't a bullish one
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

The Fed remains focused on the labor market and cooling wage growth while raising unemployment as the key to bringing hot services inflation down. "I shared with him [a regional Fed president] that they should stop, not pause," said another CFO on the call. "The consumer is being smart," the CFO said, but the Fed focus on bringing unemployment up can break the consumer. "I gave this message to him [a Fed president]: we can manage through this with unemployment below 4%." CFOs said the labor market remains tight and the wage gains, while slowing, have created a higher wage base which can't be turned back.

Persons: Jerome Powell, Drew Angerer, That's, Wall, Randy Kroszner, CFOs, Sara Eisen, Kroszner, it's Organizations: Federal Reserve, Federal, Market, Fed, CNBC, CNBC Fed Survey, Chatham House, Corporations, University of Chicago Booth School of Business Locations: Washington ,

The Reserve Bank of Australia seems to have executed a one-meeting 'skip', but perhaps more by accident than design. Leaving open the possibility in July of another 25-basis-point hike two months later could prevent financial conditions from loosening too much. The Fed wants policy to be restrictive, and financial markets to move accordingly. Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker and Fed Governors Christopher Waller and Philip Jefferson in recent weeks have introduced 'skip' and 'skipping' into Fed-watchers' lexicons. Until then, a pause was generally assumed to lay the ground for rate cuts, not a resumption of rate hikes.

Persons: Alan Greenspan, John Silvia, Silvia, Jerome Powell, Lorie Logan, Powell, Patrick Harker, Christopher Waller, Philip Jefferson, Price, Lou Crandall, Wrightson ICAP, Jamie McGeever, Paul Simao Organizations: Federal, Reserve Bank of Australia, Dynamic, Fed, Dallas, Philadelphia Fed, Consumer, Index, Reuters, Thomson Locations: ORLANDO, Florida

The Labor Department reported that U.S. job openings unexpectedly rose in April, pointing to persistent strength in a labor market that suggests pressure on both wages and inflation. Futures traders raised to 70% the probability of a 25 basis points hike at the Fed's June 13-14 policy meeting. FEDWATCHFed Governor and vice chair nominee Philip Jefferson said skipping a rate hike in two weeks would provide policymakers time to see more data before making a decision. The Labor Department's closely watched May unemployment report, due on Friday, could decide whether a rate hike occurs. Intel was the biggest gainer on the S&P 500 as the chipmaker said it was on track to hit the upper end of its second-quarter revenue forecast.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Joe Biden, it's, Brad Conger, Callaghan, Conger, FEDWATCH, Philip Jefferson, Patrick Harker, Tim Ghriskey, we've, Nvidia Corp's, Herbert Lash, Shreyashi Sanyal, Shashwat Chauhan, Shounak Dasgupta, Maju Samuel, Richard Chang Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Senate, Co, Labor Department, Philadelphia Fed, Inverness, Labor, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, Technology, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Parts Inc, Genuine, O'Reily, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co, Nvidia, Intel, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Conshohocken , Pennsylvania, New York, Bengaluru

☆ White House's Boushey: Fed interest rates having negative effect on banking sector
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Andrea Shalal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, May 2 (Reuters) - A top White House economist on Tuesday said Federal Reserve interest rate hikes aimed at curbing inflation were having a negative impact on the banking sector, and warned Republicans against worsening the situation with their debt ceiling threats. Heather Boushey, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, told Reuters that Republicans should not be "playing games" with the U.S. economy. "The Fed is raising interest rates in the hope of reducing inflation. That is having this negative effect on the banking sector. Boushey said Congress could easily remove the risk of default by raising the debt ceiling, while the broader issue of interest rates and their impact on bank assets was a far more complicated question that no single entity had the power to solve.

☆ Stock futures are flat Thursday evening: Live updates
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Hakyung Kim | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., March 29, 2023. U.S. stock futures were flat on Thursday night. S&P 500 futures rose 0.03%, while Nasdaq 100 futures fell by less than 0.01%. "The semiconductors, [which] have come to be viewed as an important bellwether for global growth, delivered a strong performance," Krosby continued. "Economic concerns enveloping recession fears haven't vanished as the yield curve still represents a counter to the market's climb higher," Krosby added.

☆ Wharton professor Jeremy Siegel blames the Fed for SVB's collapse - and warns of more failures and a painful recession
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Theron Mohamed | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Fed's inflation fight was a key factor in Silicon Valley Bank's collapse, Jeremy Siegel said. Siegel flagged the growing risk of recession if the Fed keeps raising rates. Higher rates increase borrowing costs and encourage saving over spending, which typically pulls down asset prices, saps demand, and increases the risk of a recession. One of SVB's key mistakes was investing its deposits in long-duration bonds, which plunged in price as interest rates rose. They warned that if the US central bank hikes rates by 50 basis points in March, that would increase the risk of more SVB-type implosions.

☆ Analysis: With record diversity on their boards, Fed bank chiefs see lower chances of policy error
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Ann Saphir | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Fed bank directors generally stay out of the limelight, but many U.S. central bankers view them as a critical resource. "I think the probabilities are far higher of achieving that gentle transition, that smoother transition," San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly told Reuters in an interview. This year, of the 108 spots on the 12 Fed bank boards, 44% are filled by women, and 41% by people of color, a review of the data shows. Still, a majority of the Fed's economists are white men, as are its top two monetary policymakers: Powell and New York Fed President John Williams. Hispanics and Latinos, Menendez notes, are a fast-growing segment of the population but are underrepresented at the Fed at all levels, including on Fed bank boards.

☆ Morning Bid: Wings of a Dove
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

U.S. President Joe Biden is expected on Tuesday to name Fed Vice Chair Lael Brainard to a top White House economic policy position, replacing National Economic Council Director Brian Deese. Biden confidant Jared Bernstein is expected to replace Cecilia Rouse as chair of the Council of Economic Advisers. Brainard was seen as a powerful voice cautioning against over-aggressive Fed policy tightening. U.S. stock futures and world equities were higher on Tuesday, U.S. Treasury yields and the dollar were steady to lower. Euro zone economic growth slowed in the last three months of 2022 but avoided a contraction many had predicted for months.

☆ The Fed just made its last rate hike of the year. Here's what it means and what happens next.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Fed Chair Powell took an aggressive stance at the podium Wednesday, effectively saying the central bank isn't done hiking rates. The Fed signaled it won't be taking its foot off the gas anytime soon with policy, but markets of late have been acting like a so-called Fed pivot is all but guaranteed. "Powell's very hawkish comments didn't get a very hawkish reaction from the market," Wright maintained. But the more the market ignores the Fed, the longer the Fed will have to keep monetary policy restrictive, which ultimately raises the odds of a recession. "We're likely to see head-fakes like this where the market looks for a Fed pivot," one strategist said.

☆ Fed interest rate decision spells housing trouble. It is worth it?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Allan Chernoff | Allan Chernoff Was Formerly A Senior Correspondent For Cnn | Cnbc. He Is Now Ceo Of Chernoff Communications. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and members of his Federal Reserve Board might not be cruel and heartless people, but they are in the process of killing the American dream of home ownership for millions of families. As the central bank continues to aggressively raise interest rates in its battle to get inflation under control, the housing market is collateral damage. Had the Federal Reserve been more vigilant on its inflation watch, much of this pain could have been avoided. Already the housing market, which accounts for nearly 18% of the U.S. economy, is in a serious recession, with home sales sinking and prices beginning to fall. As the housing market slumps, the Federal Reserve is fighting a battle not only to curb inflation, but to restore its reputation as an inflation fighter.

☆ 'Substantial majority" of Fed officials see rate hikes slowing 'soon,' -minutes
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The key point was the officials said the terminal rate is likely to be higher than previously expected, but the market already knows that. "There may be a little bit of a surprise that the majority supports slower rate hikes ahead...As you can see the markets have gained a little bit of upward momentum since the minutes were released." MICHAEL JAMES, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF EQUITY TRADING, WEDBUSH SECURITIES, LOS ANGELES"Multiple Fed governors indicated a slowing in the pace of rate hikes, which is pretty much exactly what equity markets needed to hear. Merely the fact that they're going to be slowing the pace confirms what the majority of people have been hoping to see. "What equity markets needed to see for the recent strength to continue was what we got from the minutes."

☆ Stocks fall as fears of more big Fed rate hikes resurface
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Paul R. La Monica | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The Dow was off about 30 points, or 0.1%, in midday trading following comments from St. Louis Fed President James Bullard about the possibility of much bigger interest rate hikes. Jefferson didn’t comment specifically about how much higher he thinks rates need to go though in order to get inflation in check. In addition, Bullard has a vote on rate hikes at the Fed’s next meeting in December, but he does not have a say on interest rates in 2023. The seven Fed governors and the New York Fed president are always on the FOMC. The St. Louis Fed president doesn’t get a vote again until 2025.

☆ Jim Cramer: Why the two-day rally to end last week is significant — and what to expect next
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( Jim Cramer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

You would just stay mum, enabling investors to expect another raise of 75 basis points, especially if retail sales this week come in above expectations. The best that can be said, though, is that the two days up to end last week seem significant — especially in light of the collapse of FTX. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade.

☆ Wall St extends rally on signs of ebbing Fed rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Stephen Culp | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The S&P 500 has reclaimed nearly 8% from the trough of its Oct. 12 close. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, all but energy (.SPNY) were green, with real estate stocks (.SPLRCR) enjoying the largest percentage gain. Third-quarter reporting season is firing all pistons, with 129 of the companies in the S&P 500 having reported. Analysts have set the bar low; aggregate S&P 500 earnings growth is now seen landing at 3.3% year-on-year, down from 4.5% at the beginning of the month, per Refinitiv. The S&P 500 posted 12 new 52-week highs and 1 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 65 new highs and 108 new lows.

☆ Undecided? Here are 3 questions we ask ourselves before selling a troubled stock
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-25 | by ( Paulina Likos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

When managing our own portfolio, these are three questions that we ask ourselves that could also be beneficial to Club members. This was a nastier separation than expected, making it unclear how it could impact PayPal's growth rate. (PayPal's stock price has fallen about 50% year to date.) This created liquidity, much of which made its way into the stock market. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio.

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