The Federal Reserve takes the key interest rate north by another quarter point.
On Wednesday morning, futures markets put the odds at 99.6% of a June interest rate increase by the Federal Reserve. Sure enough, the central bank made a move. It raised the key interest rate by 0.25%, taking the target range for the federal funds rate to the 1.00-1.25% range. The Federal Open Market Committee voted 8-1 to hike the rate, with Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari being the lone dissenter.(1,2)
What were the key takeaways from the latest Fed policy statement? A few are worth noting. First of all, the central bank did not change its dot-plot forecast for the rest of 2017. It still projects just one more interest rate hike before 2018 arrives. (After the rate move Wednesday, the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool put the odds of a September rate increase at 19% and the odds of a December rate increase at 45%.)(2,3)
Second, the Fed announced it would begin to slowly reduce its $4.5 billion holdings of Treasuries and mortgage-linked securities “this year.” Third, it lowered its inflation projection for the balance of 2017 to 1.6% from the prior 1.9%. Fourth, it projected the unemployment rate to decline to 4.3% by December.(2)
How did the market take all this? Largely in stride. The only eye-opener was the Fed declaring a start date (of sorts) to trim its huge securities stockpile. Just how does the Fed plan to unwind its balance sheet? It will start by letting about $6 billion of maturing principal in Treasuries and $4 billion of maturing mortgage-backed securities and agency debt to run off per month. Those respective limits will rise by $6 billion and $4 billion each quarter over a year, until they reach a respective $30 billion and $20 billion per month.(4)
Investors and traders can now begin to speculate when the central bank might make its next monetary policy move.
For more news from Adams Wealth Management, click here.
This material was prepared by MarketingPro, Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates. This information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate. Please note – investing involves risk, and past performance is no guarantee of future results. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional. This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty. This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as such. All indices are unmanaged and are not illustrative of any particular investment.
Citations.
1 – tinyurl.com/y8zdq44m [6/14/17]
2 – marketwatch.com/story/fed-raises-interest-rates-to-reduce-balance-sheet-this-year-2017-06-14 [6/14/17]
3 – cmegroup.com/trading/interest-rates/countdown-to-fomc.html [6/14/17]
4 – businessinsider.com/federal-reserve-rate-hike-plan-to-unwind-45-trillion-balance-sheet-2017-6 [6/14/17]
Other Information:
Adams Wealth Management Group LLC (“Adams Wealth Management”) is a registered investment adviser offering advisory services in the State of Texas and in other jurisdictions where exempted. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. The presence of this website on the Internet shall not be directly or indirectly interpreted as a solicitation of investment advisory services to persons of another jurisdiction unless otherwise permitted by statute. Follow-up or individualized responses to consumers in a particular state by Adams Wealth Management in the rendering of personalized investment advice for compensation shall not be made without our first complying with jurisdiction requirements or pursuant an applicable state exemption.
All written content on this site is for information purposes only. Opinions expressed herein are solely those of Adams Wealth Management, unless otherwise specifically cited. Material presented is believed to be from reliable sources and no representations are made by our firm as to another parties’ informational accuracy or completeness. All information or ideas provided should be discussed in detail with an advisor, accountant or legal counsel prior to implementation.
All investing involves risk, including the potential for loss of principal. There is no guarantee that any investment strategy or plan will be successful.
The Federal Reserve takes the key interest rate north by another quarter point.
On Wednesday morning, futures markets put the odds at 99.6% of a June interest rate increase by the Federal Reserve. Sure enough, the central bank made a move. It raised the key interest rate by 0.25%, taking the target range for the federal funds rate to the 1.00-1.25% range. The Federal Open Market Committee voted 8-1 to hike the rate, with Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari being the lone dissenter.(1,2)
What were the key takeaways from the latest Fed policy statement? A few are worth noting. First of all, the central bank did not change its dot-plot forecast for the rest of 2017. It still projects just one more interest rate hike before 2018 arrives. (After the rate move Wednesday, the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool put the odds of a September rate increase at 19% and the odds of a December rate increase at 45%.)(2,3)
Second, the Fed announced it would begin to slowly reduce its $4.5 billion holdings of Treasuries and mortgage-linked securities “this year.” Third, it lowered its inflation projection for the balance of 2017 to 1.6% from the prior 1.9%. Fourth, it projected the unemployment rate to decline to 4.3% by December.(2)
How did the market take all this? Largely in stride. The only eye-opener was the Fed declaring a start date (of sorts) to trim its huge securities stockpile. Just how does the Fed plan to unwind its balance sheet? It will start by letting about $6 billion of maturing principal in Treasuries and $4 billion of maturing mortgage-backed securities and agency debt to run off per month. Those respective limits will rise by $6 billion and $4 billion each quarter over a year, until they reach a respective $30 billion and $20 billion per month.(4)
Investors and traders can now begin to speculate when the central bank might make its next monetary policy move.
For more news from Adams Wealth Management, click here.
This material was prepared by MarketingPro, Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates. This information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate. Please note – investing involves risk, and past performance is no guarantee of future results. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional. This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty. This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as such. All indices are unmanaged and are not illustrative of any particular investment.
Citations.
1 – tinyurl.com/y8zdq44m [6/14/17]
2 – marketwatch.com/story/fed-raises-interest-rates-to-reduce-balance-sheet-this-year-2017-06-14 [6/14/17]
3 – cmegroup.com/trading/interest-rates/countdown-to-fomc.html [6/14/17]
4 – businessinsider.com/federal-reserve-rate-hike-plan-to-unwind-45-trillion-balance-sheet-2017-6 [6/14/17]
Other Information:
Adams Wealth Management Group LLC (“Adams Wealth Management”) is a registered investment adviser offering advisory services in the State of Texas and in other jurisdictions where exempted. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. The presence of this website on the Internet shall not be directly or indirectly interpreted as a solicitation of investment advisory services to persons of another jurisdiction unless otherwise permitted by statute. Follow-up or individualized responses to consumers in a particular state by Adams Wealth Management in the rendering of personalized investment advice for compensation shall not be made without our first complying with jurisdiction requirements or pursuant an applicable state exemption.
All written content on this site is for information purposes only. Opinions expressed herein are solely those of Adams Wealth Management, unless otherwise specifically cited. Material presented is believed to be from reliable sources and no representations are made by our firm as to another parties’ informational accuracy or completeness. All information or ideas provided should be discussed in detail with an advisor, accountant or legal counsel prior to implementation.
All investing involves risk, including the potential for loss of principal. There is no guarantee that any investment strategy or plan will be successful.
