Fed’s Waller: Do not think there is a need to consider rate hikes
Christopher Waller, a member of the Federal Reserve (Fed), said that based on the jobs report alone, he was planning to dissent in the monetary policy decision, but inflation has become more of a concern. He added that he now expects labor force growth to be near zero in a live interview with CNBC on Friday.
Key takeaways
Based on the jobs report was planning to dissent, but since then, inflation has become more of a concern.
Also now expects labor force growth to be close to zero, which changes the breakeven level of job growth.
Zero job growth does not seem "normal," but that is what the math may indicate will keep the unemployment rate stable.
If oil stays high for months on end at some point it bleeds into core inflation.
A high and persistent oil shock would not have a transitory impact on inflation.
Cannot "look through" a large and persistent oil shock; at this point caution is warranted.
Want to wait and see how this evolves before deciding on rate cuts for later this year.
Is making progress on taming structural inflation, which may be close to 2% now but is held higher by tariffs.
Do not think there is a need to consider rate hikes.
Market pricing has not shown a de-anchoring of expectations, investors understand inflation will drop as tariffs roll off.
If tariff effects don't roll off by second half of year it will be tricky.
A shock of the right sort could push companies to start cutting labor.
Consumer outlook could also be damaged with gas prices rising.
No reason to make bank reserves scarce just to reduce the balance sheet.
Proposals to change demand for reserves, and allowing the balance sheet to shrink, is a good topic for study and discussion.
If there are losses in private credit it is a bunch of firms and rich people.”
US Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies today. US Dollar was the strongest against the Japanese Yen.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.29% | 0.52% | 0.71% | -0.21% | 0.37% | 0.39% | -0.09% | |
| EUR | -0.29% | 0.22% | 0.46% | -0.50% | 0.09% | 0.09% | -0.37% | |
| GBP | -0.52% | -0.22% | 0.23% | -0.72% | -0.13% | -0.13% | -0.58% | |
| JPY | -0.71% | -0.46% | -0.23% | -0.91% | -0.35% | -0.33% | -0.78% | |
| CAD | 0.21% | 0.50% | 0.72% | 0.91% | 0.57% | 0.59% | 0.13% | |
| AUD | -0.37% | -0.09% | 0.13% | 0.35% | -0.57% | 0.01% | -0.45% | |
| NZD | -0.39% | -0.09% | 0.13% | 0.33% | -0.59% | -0.01% | -0.46% | |
| CHF | 0.09% | 0.37% | 0.58% | 0.78% | -0.13% | 0.45% | 0.46% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the US Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent USD (base)/JPY (quote).
Author
Agustin Wazne
FXStreet
Agustin Wazne joined FXStreet as a Junior News Editor, focusing on Commodities and covering Majors.
