Richmond Federal Reserve (Fed) President Thomas Barkin said on Tuesday that the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decided to raise interest rates last Wednesday because inflation risks outweighed those to maximum employment.
Barkin, who spoke at an event in Baltimore, said, “Last week's rate hike will help restore price stability, we'll see if more hikes are needed,” and remains unsure about further tightening needed by the Fed to tackle inflationary pressures.
Key highlights:
We raised rates last week because risks to inflation outweigh risks to maximum employment
Last week's rate hike will help restore price stability, we'll see if more hikes are needed
It is tempting to blame high inflation on a handful of categories exposed to energy costs or tariffs, but much of the personal consumption expenditures index is rising by more than 3%
Economic conditions are, if anything, firming
There is momentum outside data centers and AI, with consumer spending holding up and strength in defense and manufacturing
Passing shocks like tariffs and energy are not fading, there is a risk that high inflation today will impact future inflation
The labor market is not overheated or even particularly tight
Don't see much evidence that consumer balance sheets are stretched
Consumers will spend as long as the job market remains healthy
US Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies today. US Dollar was the strongest against the Canadian Dollar.
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the US Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent USD (base)/JPY (quote).
Markets analyst, news editor, and trading instructor with over 14 years of experience across FX, commodities, US equity indices, and global macro markets.