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Fed to Buy Total of Up to $200 Billion of GSE Debt in 2009, Sees "Gradual Resumption of Sustainable Economic Growth"; Fed Says Inflation May Persist Below Best Level, Will Use All Available Tools to Help Economy Recover; Fed to Continue Monitoring Balance Sheet Size and Composition (Bloomberg...
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The Federal Reserve announced Tuesday that it would cut the Federal funds target rate by 75 basis points to 0.25% , going a step further than the consensus market expectation. The accompanying statement said labour market conditions have deteriorated and that consumer spending, business investment, and...
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Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said that economic activity has downshifted further and the policy response must be vigorous. He said cutting the Fed funds target rate below 1% is "certainly feasible", but broader action could be more efficient. "At this point, the scope for using...
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On the eve of the U.S. presidential election, Fed funds futures are pricing in an 83.4% chance that the Federal Reserve will cut rates by 50 bps at the next FOMC meeting on Dec. 16. In a note to clients, economists at Capital Economics wrote that regardless of the outcome of the election, the next president...
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San Francisco Federal Reserve President Janet Yellen said the Fed could lower rates below 1%, and that they could reach as low as zero amid a weak economy. Speaking at an event hosted by the University of California at Berkley and UCLA, Yellen said that loan rates would be substantially higher without...
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The Federal Reserve announced Wednesday that it would cut the Federal funds target rate by half a point, as widely expected, to 1.00% . The accompanying statement said economic activity had decreased markedly from a decline in consumer expenditure. In the growth paragraph, the FOMC said: "Business...
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It is widely expected that the Federal Reserve will cut the Fed funds rate by 50 basis points to 1.00% on Wednesday, the lowest level since June 2004. Fed watchers expect the vote to be unanimous and the accompanying statement to echo the "wait-and-see" approach seen in previous months. The...
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The Federal Reserve was among six major world central banks that delivered an inter-meeting 50 basis point cut to its overnight lending rate. The Fed cut its key rate 50 bps to 1.50%, citing weakening economic activity and a reduction in inflationary pressures. "Incoming economic data suggest that...
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Economists say the larger-than-consensus decline in employment in September is further evidence of broad-based weakness in the economy, and there are no indications that job losses will ease anytime soon. As a result, many are saying the Federal Reserve should cut the target interest rate. U.S. nonfarm...
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Fed funds futures have priced in a 100% chance of a rate cut for the next FOMC meeting scheduled for October 29, as markets rallied today on a CNBC report that the U.S. government has come up with a plan to deal with the financial crisis in the U.S. Markets are now pricing in an 82% chance of a 25 bps...
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In the aftermath of the Federal Reserve's decision to hold rates at 2.00% and the U.S. Government's move to bail out struggling insurer AIG, Fed funds futures are pricing in an 80% chance of a 25 bps rate cut for the next FOMC meeting, scheduled for October 29. In what has been an unprecedented...
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The Federal Reserve announced Tuesday that it would hold the Fed funds target rate at 2.00%, causing markets to sell off. Some economists viewed the decisions as a sign of strength; others were critical of the Fed's "weak" response to dangerous market turmoil. Brian Bethune, chief U.S....
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Fed funds futures are now expecting a 100% chance that the Federal Reserve will cut rates at the FOMC meeting today; the question remains, however, by how much. Markets are now factoring in a 76% chance of a 25 bps rate cut and a 24% chance of a 50 bps rate cut on a day that saw the U.S. consumer price...
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In a stunning reversal of fortune, markets are now beginning to digest the news of a financial world without storied investment banks Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch. Fed Funds Futures are now pricing in an 80% chance that the Federal Reserve will cut 25 bps cut at Tuesday's FOMC meeting. This...
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Fed funds futures are now pricing a 31.1% chance that the Federal Reserve will cut rates by 25 bps for the year end meeting scheduled for Dec. 16 amid a growing U.S. trade deficit and increasing continuing claims report released today. The U.S. monthly trade deficit grew more than expected in July, deteriorating...