Powell says tighter credit could mean a lower peak in rates
BNN Bloomberg
U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell gave a clear signal he is inclined to pause interest-rate increases next month, taking command of the policy debate after several officials suggested they wanted to keep hiking.
“We’ve come a long way in policy tightening and the stance of policy is restrictive and we face uncertainty about the lagged effects of our tightening so far and about the extent of credit tightening from recent banking stresses,” Powell told a Fed conference Friday in Washington.
“Having come this far, we can afford to look at the data and the evolving outlook to make careful assessments,” he said, reading from prepared notes.
Investors pared bets on a rate hike next month to around 13 per cent after Powell’s comments compared with 33 per cent before he spoke.
