Federal Reserve’s (Fed) advisor and Chief Economist at KPMG, Diane Swonk, told MNI on Monday, the “Fed’s’decision Wednesday shows the central bank is strongly considering a halt to monetary tightening including an end to balance-sheet runoffs because of what could prove a substantial drag on the economy and inflation from the recent banking crisis.”
Additional takeaways
“It was the most dovish hike I could imagine.”
“If you get a cooling that’s much more rapid without having the economy go into a deep freeze, the Fed could be easing by the end of the year and into next year.”
“The Fed could be forced into such a policy reversal if a credit crunch delivers a bigger wallop to the economy than officials had foreseen.”
“Policymakers are trying to estimate the effects of suddenly tighter credit on growth, jobs and inflation – but it’s too soon for a sound judgment.”
“FOMC members appear worried that rate hikes from zero to nearly 5% in just a year might be excessive in the face of financial turmoil.”
“They don’t know how much that will do more than they need to cool inflation and chill the economy,”
“Their goal is to chill the economy not send it into a deep freeze.”
Market reaction
The US Dollar Index ignores the dovish Fed view, as it is picking up fresh bids in early Europe. The US Dollar Index is rising 0.09% on the day at 103.19, as of writing.