Latest news with #NeelKashkari
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Fed Chief Kashkari's 'Wait-and-See' on Rate Cuts
Minneapolis Fed chief Neel Kashkari still sees room for two rate cuts this yearmaybe kicking off around Septemberbut he's urging colleagues to stay nimble, since today's tariffs could fuel tomorrow's inflation. In a Friday essay, Kashkari admitted that inflation is inching back toward the Fed's 2% goal, yet he's worried that Trump's sweeping tariffs have injected fresh uncertainty. He's kept his call for two cuts in 2025 (first one tentatively in September), but he's clear: don't pencil in an easing path now only to discover later that higher import fees have bumped up consumer prices. Most Fed speakers this weekexcept Governors Waller and Bowmanhaven't even seriously entertained a July cut. Kashkari wants the focus on actual inflation and real economic data, not a pre-set calendar commitment. If tariffs stick around, businesses will likely pass those extra costs on to you and me. By staying data-driven, Kashkari hopes to avoid a policy misstep that could let inflation creep back in. Keep an eye on incoming CPI and PCE reportsand any fresh trade headlines. If the tariff saga deepens, Kashkari's call for flexibility could push rate cuts into late 2025or beyond. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Axios
18 hours ago
- Business
- Axios
Americans spent and earned less in May as trade war bites
Amid Stagflation Watch 2025, the latest data dump shows a little more stag-, but no real sign of -flation. Why it matters: Mainstream economic forecasts see the trade war leading to both higher prices and more sluggish growth. In May spending and income data out Friday morning, there is more reason to worry about the latter than the former. By the numbers: The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index targeted by the Fed rose a mere 0.1% in May, with the core gauge — excluding food and energy prices — up 0.2 %. While core inflation ticked up to 2.7% year-over-year in May, it has risen at only a 1.7% annualized pace over the last three months. That's the lowest since December 2023, and fully consistent with the Fed's 2% inflation target. Tariff-driven inflation remains the dog that won't bite. State of play: The worrying aspects of the report weren't on the inflation side of the ledger, but in what Americans are earning and spending. Adjusted for inflation, consumer spending fell 0.3% after rising by 0.1% in April. Real disposable income declined by 0.7% last month, the first time since last August that inflation outstripped pay growth. The new numbers brought Atlanta Fed's GDPNow tracker down to an estimate of 2.9% GDP growth rate in Q2, from 3.4%. What they're saying: "Consumers cut back on outlays last month, making fewer discretionary purchases as they grapple with softer labor market conditions, increased financial uncertainty and the onset of tariff-induced price increases," wrote EY-Parthenon senior economist Lydia Boussour in a note. Reality check: The drops in consumption spending and incomes can be at least partly chalked up to one-off events, instead of outright evidence of an economic slowdown. Consumers are easing spending after a springtime splurge on all sorts of goods, aimed at getting ahead of tariff-related price increases. For instance, the biggest drag on spending was goods, autos in particular — a category that was a key beneficiary of spending earlier in the year. The drop in personal income came after a spike in recent months, including a 0.7% jump in April alone from a payout of social benefits for teachers, firefighters and police officers, related to recent legislation. Now it is wearing off. Yes, but: It's clear that the economy had less momentum coming into the second quarter than initially believed. Revisions out Thursday showed the economy weakened at a faster pace in the first quarter, in part due to a slower rate of consumer spending. Economic policymakers were reassured that underlying measures of growth held up as tariff front-loading weighed on the headline figure. But those measures were also revised lower: Real final sales to private domestic purchasers, the sum of consumer spending and investment, rose 1.9% in the first quarter — down 0.6 percentage point from the previous estimate and well below the 3% figure first reported. Minneapolis Fed president Neel Kashkari pondered Friday how tariffs are likely to impact consumer prices — and why there's so little sign of it in the data so far.
Zawya
a day ago
- Business
- Zawya
Fed's Kashkari expects two rate cuts this year, with pause possible
Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari is sticking to his view that cooling inflation will allow the world's most important major central bank to cut its policy rate twice this year, starting in September. In an essay released on Friday, Kashkari also signalled that if progress on inflation stalls or reverses the Fed could simply pause its rate-cutting cycle until prices ease again. Tariffs suggest an inflation boost is "likely coming," he said, as more goods from Asia, subject to the biggest tariff increases, arrive on the shelves of U.S. businesses. While businesses may not want to risk angering customers by charging more for their wares, they will start passing on price increases in the absence of trade deals lowering tariffs, he said. In this scenario, the effect of tariffs on inflation may simply arrive later than expected, Kashkari said. At the same time, Kashkari said, the economic data so far has revealed "only a modest imprint of the effects of tariffs on prices, activity or the labor market," with inflation making renewed progress toward the Fed's 2% goal. That may suggest, he said, that companies have won exemptions, have adjusted their supply routes, or are otherwise finding ways to avoid the tariffs altogether, limiting the impact on inflation. "Those opposing signals have led me to maintain my outlook for two cuts over the remainder of 2025, implying a possible first cut in September, barring some surprising development before then," Kashkari said. "If we were to cut in September and then the effects of tariffs showed up this fall, I believe we should not be on a preset easing course" but could adjust to fit the new data, he added. "If the data called for it we could hold the policy rate at the new level until we gained greater confidence that inflation was headed back to our target." For now, though, Kashkari said: "We should put more emphasis on the actual inflation and real economic data that we are seeing without committing to an easing policy path in case the effects of tariffs are merely delayed." Last week, Fed policymakers left their overnight target rate for lending between banks unchanged at between 4.25% and 4.5%. Uncertainty over the outlook is keeping the central bank on the sidelines amid expectations the tariffs will push up inflation this year while depressing growth and hiring. (Reporting by Ann Saphir Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Fed's Kashkari expects two rate cuts this year, with pause possible
(Reuters) -Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari is sticking to his view that cooling inflation will allow the world's most important major central bank to cut its policy rate twice this year, starting in September. In an essay released on Friday, Kashkari also signalled that if progress on inflation stalls or reverses the Fed could simply pause its rate-cutting cycle until prices ease again. Tariffs suggest an inflation boost is "likely coming," he said, as more goods from Asia, subject to the biggest tariff increases, arrive on the shelves of U.S. businesses. While businesses may not want to risk angering customers by charging more for their wares, they will start passing on price increases in the absence of trade deals lowering tariffs, he said. In this scenario, the effect of tariffs on inflation may simply arrive later than expected, Kashkari said. At the same time, Kashkari said, the economic data so far has revealed "only a modest imprint of the effects of tariffs on prices, activity or the labor market," with inflation making renewed progress toward the Fed's 2% goal. That may suggest, he said, that companies have won exemptions, have adjusted their supply routes, or are otherwise finding ways to avoid the tariffs altogether, limiting the impact on inflation. "Those opposing signals have led me to maintain my outlook for two cuts over the remainder of 2025, implying a possible first cut in September, barring some surprising development before then," Kashkari said. "If we were to cut in September and then the effects of tariffs showed up this fall, I believe we should not be on a preset easing course" but could adjust to fit the new data, he added. "If the data called for it we could hold the policy rate at the new level until we gained greater confidence that inflation was headed back to our target." For now, though, Kashkari said: "We should put more emphasis on the actual inflation and real economic data that we are seeing without committing to an easing policy path in case the effects of tariffs are merely delayed." Last week, Fed policymakers left their overnight target rate for lending between banks unchanged at between 4.25% and 4.5%. Uncertainty over the outlook is keeping the central bank on the sidelines amid expectations the tariffs will push up inflation this year while depressing growth and hiring.
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Fed's Kashkari Sees Two Rate Cuts This Year Amid Tariff Unknowns
Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari said he sees two interest-rate cuts as likely this year — with the first potentially in September — but warned that tariffs could have a delayed impact on inflation and policymakers should remain flexible. 'While we gather more evidence on the true tariff shock affecting the economy, I believe we should put more emphasis on the actual inflation and real economic data that we are seeing without committing to an easing policy path in case the effects of tariffs are merely delayed,' Kashkari wrote in an essay published Friday on his bank's website.
