|

Fed's Goolsbee: The bar for Fed policy change is now pretty high

Federal Reserve (Fed) Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee hit newswires for a second time on Thursday, adding extra caution that ongoing trade tensions will continue to make it harder, not easier, for the Fed to adjust policy rates, regardless of how much the markets and the Trump administration may want rates to go down.

Key highlights

The current tariffs will drive up inflation in the near term, and hurt growth.

Now is the time for the US central bank to wait and see on interest rates.

The bar for Fed policy change now is pretty high.

Long-term treasuries still appear to be the safest asset in the world.

I prefer market inflation expectations data over surveys.

The current data suggest the job market is still solid.

I won’t speculate on how the Fed would respond to a market stress event.

Broad financial conditions indices can be hard to read.

The bond market selloff showed that the US was not the only nation getting hit.

The solid 10-year treasury auction reduced my worry about the market.

Current tariffs are higher than most scenarios, even with Trump's pause.

The current tariff system is a big scenario.

Author

Joshua Gibson

Joshua joins the FXStreet team as an Economics and Finance double major from Vancouver Island University with twelve years' experience as an independent trader focusing on technical analysis.

More from Joshua Gibson
Share:

Markets move fast. We move first.

Orange Juice Newsletter brings you expert driven insights - not headlines. Every day on your inbox.

By subscribing you agree to our Terms and conditions.

Editor's Picks

EUR/USD holds steady below 1.1800

EUR/USD moves sideways in a narrow channel below 1.1800 as the market volatility remains low ahead of the New Year holiday. On Tuesday, investors will pay close attention to the minutes of the Federal Reserve's December policy meeting.

GBP/USD retreats below 1.3500 as trading conditions remain thin

GBP/USD corrects lower after posting strong gains in the previous week and trades below 1.3500 on Monday. With the action in financial markets turning subdued following the Christmas holiday, however, the pair's losses remain limited.

Gold holds above $4,300 after profit taking kicked in

Gold retreats sharply from the record-peak it set at $4,550 and trades below $4,400, losing more than 3% on the day. Growing optimism about a Ukraine-Russia peace agreement and profit-taking ahead of the New Year holiday seem to be causing XAU/USD to stay under heavy bearish pressure.

Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP bulls regain strength

Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Ripple record roughly 3% gains on Monday, regaining strength mid-holiday season. Despite thin liquidity in the holiday season, BTC and major altcoins are regaining strength as US President Donald Trump pushes peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. The technical outlook for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Ripple gradually shifts bullish as selling pressure wanes.

Economic outlook 2026-2027 in advanced countries: Solidity test

After a year marked by global economic resilience and ending on a note of optimism, 2026 looks promising and could be a year of solid economic performance. In our baseline scenario, we expect most of the supportive factors at work in 2025 to continue to play a role in 2026.

Crypto market outlook for 2026

Year 2025 was volatile, as crypto often is.  Among positive catalysts were favourable regulatory changes in the U.S., rise of Digital Asset Treasuries (DAT), adoption of AI and tokenization of Real-World-Assets (RWA).