Monetary policy

The Federal Reserve should get a conversation going on tapering its bond-purchase program “sooner rather than later,” Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker said.

The Investment Company Institute reported another week of inflows, but at a lower clip than recent weeks with $541 million coming into municipal bond mutual funds.

The Federal Reserve’s policy is in a good place right now, said Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, while playing down signals from data that she warns will be volatile as the economy reopens.

The U.S. labor market remains in a “deep hole” and needs aggressive support to speed its healing from the COVID-19 pandemic, said Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari.

It will probably take “quite some time” for Federal Reserve officials to conclude the economy has made substantial progress following Friday’s disappointing jobs report, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said.

Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari said he has “zero sympathy” for critics on Wall Street, who slam the central bank’s aggressive support of the U.S. economy while millions of Americans remain out of work.

A rising appetite for risk across a variety of asset markets is stretching valuations and creating vulnerabilities in the U.S. financial system, the Federal Reserve said in its semi-annual financial stability report.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said she was not predicting or recommending interest-rate increases when remarking earlier about the impact of fiscal spending on the U.S. economy.

A senior White House economic aide said the decision on selecting the next central bank chief will come after a thorough “process.”

Inflationary pressures remain high while the manufacturing sector continues to deal with supply chain woes that hold it back, analysts said.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that while the U.S. economic recovery is “making real progress,” the gains have been uneven following a downturn that cut hard along lines of race and income.

Signs of excess risk taking in financial markets show it’s time for the U.S. central bank to start debating a reduction in its massive bond purchases, said the president of the Dallas Federal Reserve, breaking ranks with Chair Jerome Powell.

The key benchmark that the Federal Reserve targets to control monetary policy dropped for the first time this month, dragged down as growing imbalances in the Treasury-bill market weigh on short-term dollar rates.

The Federal Reserve will likely taper off its bond purchases before considering raising interest rates, Chairman Jerome Powell said.

Federal Reserve Vice Chair Richard Clarida said policy makers will await evidence on whether they’re reaching their goals on price stability and employment before adjusting monetary policy.

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President Mary Daly said she’s “bullish” on the rebound of the U.S. economy, but there is still a long way before the recovery is complete and will wait for the data to show it.

Jack Janasiewicz, senior vice president, portfolio manager and portfolio strategist at Natixis Investment Managers Solutions, discusses inflation and why there is disagreement on whether it will become an issue this year. He talks about how stimulus money and the employment situation factor in. Gary Siegel hosts. (Taped March 9 / 30 minutes).

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said prices would rise this year as the pandemic recedes and Americans are able to go out and spend, but he played down the risk that this would spur unwanted inflation.

Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert Kaplan said he is among policy makers estimating that the central bank will have to raise interest rates next year.

The economy seems to be gathering steam, though it is still far from fully recovering from the damage wrought by the pandemic, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said.