KONTAN.CO.ID - WASHINGTON. The Federal Reserve is widely expected on Wednesday to leave interest rates unchanged for a third straight time, but also signal that a pivot to monetary policy easing will neither come soon nor be sharp, given inflation's bumpy progress downward. In quarterly economic projections due to be released at the end of a two-day meeting, U.S. central bankers are still likely to pencil in at least a couple of rate cuts by the end of next year, as they seek to strike the right balance between policy that's restrictive enough to slow spending and hiring but not so tight that it sends them into a tailspin. Fed Chair Jerome Powell, however, is expected in a press conference to emphasize that any cuts in borrowing costs are contingent on further improvement on inflation, which despite a rapid decline this year is still above the Fed's 2% goal.
Fed Likely to Hold Rates Steady, Signal Small Decline in 2024
KONTAN.CO.ID - WASHINGTON. The Federal Reserve is widely expected on Wednesday to leave interest rates unchanged for a third straight time, but also signal that a pivot to monetary policy easing will neither come soon nor be sharp, given inflation's bumpy progress downward. In quarterly economic projections due to be released at the end of a two-day meeting, U.S. central bankers are still likely to pencil in at least a couple of rate cuts by the end of next year, as they seek to strike the right balance between policy that's restrictive enough to slow spending and hiring but not so tight that it sends them into a tailspin. Fed Chair Jerome Powell, however, is expected in a press conference to emphasize that any cuts in borrowing costs are contingent on further improvement on inflation, which despite a rapid decline this year is still above the Fed's 2% goal.