The Federal Reserve has pivoted toward reversing the steepest interest-rate hikes in a generation after containing an inflation surge so far without a recession or a significant cost to employment.
While Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that policymakers are prepared to resume rate increases should price pressures return, he and his colleagues issued forecasts showing that a series of cuts would be likely next year. Powell said the topic came up at their meeting, where the Fed decided to keep rates at a 22-year high for a third straight time.
Moreover, Powell’s lack of pushback during his press conference against growing investor expectations for 2024 rate cuts helped spark a massive rally in Treasuries and sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average of stocks to a record high.