Fed Must Decide If Quarter-Point Cut Will Be Enough for Workers
(Bloomberg) — The Federal Reserve is set to begin unwinding its tightening campaign this month as inflation cools and the labor market slows. The big question policymakers now face is whether a small interest-rate cut will be enough to keep the economy in expansion mode.
The monthly jobs report Friday showed the pace of hiring in the US moderated over the last three months to the slowest since the onset of the pandemic in 2020. Even so, the numbers left investors skeptical as to whether Fed officials would opt for an outsize rate cut at their Sept. 17-18 meeting.
The release sets the table for a heated debate between those like Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who is open to a larger cut to ensure the central bank doesn’t fall behind the curve, and other officials who “are still waffling on a quarter point,” according to Diane Swonk, chief economist at KPMG.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/fed-must-decide-quarter-point-150000653.html