Interest rates

Kansas City Federal Reserve President Jeffrey Schmid and Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said in statements Friday that their dissents from this week's interest rate decision were spurred by inflation concerns and a lack of sufficient economic data.

Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller said in a speech Monday that private and public-sector data suggests that the labor market is continuing to weaken, making a 25 basis point rate cut in December a prudent choice.

Fed Gov. Stephan Miran has spent his short tenure at the central bank arguing that disinflation in housing and immigration reforms will tamp down inflation in the near term. But other economists say the timing, degree and context of those effects is very much in question.

Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran said emerging stresses in housing and private credit markets warrant a reduction to short-term interest rates. While preferring a 50 basis point cut in December, Miran said he would settle for a 25 basis point reduction.

In her first public appearance since President Trump moved to fire her from the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Fed Gov. Lisa Cook reiterated her commitment to bringing inflation under 2% and said that the labor market remains "solid."

Federal Reserve Gov. Stephen Miran said Thursday that the central bank's forays into examining climate change and racial justice under the prior administration politicized the Fed. He also argued that Fed officials should limit their comments on economic policies such as tariffs.

Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr called for a cautious approach, emphasizing the possibility that tariffs will create persistent inflation. 

Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Jeff Schmid said that the central bank should continue its focus on curbing inflation, as the job market is "largely in balance."

Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman said she foresees three interest rate cuts for this year, a view bolstered by the latest employment data.

Bond yields are shooting up for the second time in as many months. Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller attributes the volatility to concerns about rising national debt levels.

"There are a lot of moving parts here with the potential to either help or hinder the Fed's quest for price stability and maximum employment" this year, noted BMO Deputy Chief Economist Michael Gregory, who says the Fed will "stand pat."

The Fed may make more cuts and there's a floor forming under the Treasury market, per panelists at the Executives' Club of Chicago's Annual Economic Outlook.

The Federal Reserve chair said there are no economic indicators calling for rapid rate cuts. He also addressed Fed independence, the impact of Trump's economic agenda and more.

In a speech, Federal Reserve Gov. Adriana Kugler said sound monetary policy comes when electoral politics are kept out of central banking.

The Fed's expected September rate cut will "make market conditions more conducive to moving projects forward" said Dodge Construction Network's chief economist Richard Branch.

New York Fed President John Williams said the Fed "will cut rates eventually" during a fireside chat at Milken Institute's Global conference on Monday.

Munis posted losses in April, returning negative 1.24%. The asset class is also seeing losses of 1.62% year-to-date.

A majority of those polled at The Bond Buyer's 2024 National Outlook Conference also felt issuance would increase moderately this year, to between $400 billion and $450 billion.

Interest rates and federal elections hang heavy over the industry and municipal analysts believe certain muni sectors or subsectors will experience credit deterioration.

The BSBY interest rate benchmark was originally envisioned as a successor to the once-ubiquitous Libor rate. But it failed to gain much traction, and Bloomberg now plans to shut it down next year.