FEDERAL RESERVE: “Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will deliver his first semiannual monetary policy report to the House Financial Services Committee on Feb. 28, the committee said Tuesday [2-6-18]. Mr. Powell also will testify before the Senate Banking Committee the following day, March 1, a spokeswoman for that committee confirmed. The two-day Humphrey-Hawkins hearings—a reference […]
Category: Federal Reserve
2/5/2018
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Jerome Powell spent his first day as chairman of the Federal Reserve sizing up the largest stock selloff in 6½ years and the largest one-day point decline on record for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The Fed was an indirect player in the recent market tumult. A Friday [2-2-18] report of […]
2/4/2018
DOW/ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE: “The stock market’s recent selloff crystallizes four important challenges facing the Federal Reserve’s new chairman, Jerome Powell, who takes charge Monday [2-5-18]. Low inflation and steady job gains allowed his predecessor, Janet Yellen, to raise interest rates slowly, enabling the economy to heal and the markets to romp ahead. Mr. Powell takes over […]
1/23/2018
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Senate confirmed Jerome Powell to become the 16th chairman of the Federal Reserve, clearing the way for a new leader likely to continue raising interest rates to keep the nation’s economic expansion on track. Mr. Powell, who was confirmed Tuesday [1-23-18] by an 84-13 vote, will take over when Chairwoman […]
1/23/2018
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Federal Reserve nominee Marvin Goodfriend told lawmakers Tuesday [1-23-18] he supports the central bank’s dual mandate to maintain stable prices and pursue maximum employment, after sharp questioning from Democrats over his past comments suggesting the Fed should focus on inflation. Democrats pressed Mr. Goodfriend at his confirmation hearing to explain his […]
1/23/2018
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Federal Reserve Board nominee Marvin Goodfriend on Tuesday [1-23-18] defended his past focus on inflation, saying that while earlier warnings about runaway prices were ‘absolutely’ proved wrong, it was the Fed’s credibility in controlling inflation that has allowed unemployment to fall so low. In contrast to warnings that low interest rates […]
1/18/2018
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Federal Reserve is facing a significant change in leadership that goes beyond the installation of a new chairman. It is also awaiting the appointment of two other top officials who will play a crucial role in shaping Fed policy. President Trump, who has already nominated Jerome H. Powell as the […]
1/18/2018
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATION/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The White House is considering John Williams, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, as a candidate to serve as the vice chairman of Federal Reserve Board in Washington, according to people familiar with the matter. Mr. Williams succeeded Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen as the San Francisco Fed […]
1/4/2018
FEDERAL RESERVE/TAXES: “Federal Reserve officials in December debated whether looming tax cuts might require them to raise short-term interest rates more aggressively in 2018 than last year, when they lifted borrowing costs three times. Officials expressed growing confidence in the strength of the labor market and the economy, according to minutes of the Fed’s Dec. […]
12/15/2017
BANKING/FEDERAL RESERVE: “Federal Reserve Vice Chairman for Supervision Randal Quarles will recuse himself from participating in matters specific to Wells Fargo & Co., ‘to avoid even the potential appearance of a conflict of interest,’ the central bank said Friday [12-15-17]. The Fed said Mr. Quarles’s decision to recuse himself is voluntary and not legally required. […]
12/13/2017
ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE: “The Federal Reserve showed continued optimism about the U.S. economy in voting Wednesday [12-13-17] to raise short-term interest rates for the third time this year, and signaling it would stay on a similar path next year amid a leadership transition. Officials nudged their economic-growth estimates higher for the next few years on expectations […]
12/7/2017
EDUCATION/FEDERAL RESERVE: “College has become out of reach for large numbers of students, making it harder for them to earn more than their parents and limiting economic mobility, Federal Reserve Bank of New York President William Dudley said Thursday. College costs have risen faster than wages for decades, driving more students to take out loans. […]
12/5/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE: “Robert S. Kaplan, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, is ready to raise the Fed’s benchmark interest rate at the Fed’s final meeting of the year in mid-December. The economy is gaining strength, and Mr. Kaplan said it made sense to raise rates while times were good, so that the Fed […]
12/5/2017
BANKING/FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Senate Banking Committee voted Tuesday [12-5-17] to advance the nomination of Federal Reserve governor Jerome Powell to be the next chairman of the U.S. central bank. All but one of the panel’s Democrats— Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.)—joined Republicans to approve Mr. Powell’s nomination by a 22-1 vote. ‘His years […]
11/29/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump nominated Marvin Goodfriend, a former Federal Reserve economist and current Carnegie Mellon University professor, for a spot on the central bank’s board of governors on Wednesday. If confirmed by the Senate, Mr. Goodfriend would fill one of three vacancies on the Fed’s powerful seven-member board… Mr. Goodfriend, a […]
11/29/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump on Wednesday [11-29-17] nominated Marvin Goodfriend, a leading critic of the Federal Reserve’s actions since the 2008 financial crisis, to serve on the Fed’s board of governors. The choice of Mr. Goodfriend, a professor of economics at Carnegie Mellon University, is a victory for conservatives who want to reshape […]
11/29/2017
ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE: “Economic activity expanded at a ‘modest to moderate pace’ in recent weeks amid signs of rising prices and ongoing strength in labor markets, a Federal Reserve report said Wednesday [11-29-17]. Price pressures strengthened since the last report, the Fed said in its latest roundup of anecdotal information about regional economic conditions known as […]
11/28/2017
BANKING/FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Jerome H. Powell, nominated by President Trump to lead the Federal Reserve, presented himself as a pragmatic moderate who would largely continue the Fed’s current policies at a confirmation hearing before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday [11-28-17]. Mr. Powell, a Fed governor since 2012, defended the Fed’s approach to financial […]
11/27/2017
BANKING/FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Federal Reserve governor Jerome Powell heads to Capitol Hill on Tuesday [11-28-17] for what could be one of the least contentious confirmation hearings for a Fed chair nominee since the financial crisis. The Senate Banking Committee is considering Mr. Powell’s nomination to succeed Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen when her term as […]
11/22/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE: “Federal Reserve officials said at their latest meeting they likely would raise short-term interest rates ‘in the near term’ due to a strengthening economy, although several said their support for the move would hinge on whether they see inflation picking up. Minutes of the Oct. 31-Nov. 1 meeting, released Wednesday [11-22-17] with the […]
11/20/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE: “Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen said Monday [11-20-17] she will leave the central bank once her term as chair ends in February, wrapping up a pivotal tenure in which the Fed began to reverse its extraordinary, decadelong support for the economy. Yellen’s departure from the Fed long before her term as a governor […]
11/20/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE: “Federal Reserve governor Jerome Powell had regular meetings with an array of Wall Street executives after taking on new responsibilities this year as the Fed’s point person on bank regulation. Mr. Powell, who has been nominated by President Donald Trump to succeed Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen when her term expires in February, also […]
11/16/2017
BANKING/FEDERAL RESERVE: “Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester said Thursday [11-16-17] she believed inflation would continue to rise and eventually hit the Fed’s 2% target, making it appropriate for the central bank to continue gradually raising rates… In a question-and-answer session following a presentation at the Cato Institute in Washington, D.C., Ms. Mester […]
11/14/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The White House is considering economist Mohamed El-Erian as one of several candidates to serve as the Federal Reserve’s vice chairman, according to a person familiar with the matter. The process of selecting the central bank’s No. 2 official began this month after President Donald Trump nominated Fed governor Jerome Powell […]
11/9/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal this month expect that a Federal Reserve led by Jerome Powell would mean little change in monetary policy and a less aggressive approach to financial regulation. Most survey respondents expect the Fed to raise short-term interest rates next month and lift them three times […]
11/7/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NEW YORK: “Help Wanted: A senior executive with a keen knowledge of markets and economics, but who isn’t too close to Wall Street because he or she will be responsible for regulating some of the world’s biggest banks. This is the balancing act facing a newly formed search committee for the next president of […]
11/6/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE: “The Federal Reserve Bank of New York announced Monday [11-6-17] that its leader William Dudley is planning to step down early and retire in the middle of next year. In a press release, the bank said Mr. Dudley was stepping down ahead of the end of his current term’s conclusion in January 2019 […]
11/2/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Today, it was my pleasure and great honor to announce my nomination of Jerome Powell to be the next Chairman of the @FederalReserve. https://t.co/6aDuRy3zws” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, Nov. 2, 2017 05:35pm […]
11/1/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The White House has notified Federal Reserve governor Jerome Powell that President Donald Trump intends to nominate him as the next chairman of the central bank, according to a person familiar with the matter, a move likely to combine continuity on interest-rate policy with perhaps a lighter touch on financial regulation. […]
11/1/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he thought Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen was ‘excellent’ but declined to say who was his pick to lead the U.S. central bank ahead of a planned announcement on Thursday afternoon. ‘I think Janet Yellen is excellent,’ Trump told reporters during a meeting with cabinet […]
10/29/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump is likely to announce Federal Reserve governor Jerome Powell as his nominee to be the next chairman of the U.S. central bank next week, according to a person familiar with the matter. The president hasn’t made a formal decision and could still change his mind, several people familiar […]
10/27/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “People are anxiously awaiting my decision as to who the next head of the Fed will be…. ?https://t.co/PEj1KNYcAO” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, October 27, 2017 04:17pm […]
10/27/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump is expected to announce his choice for the next leader of the U.S. central bank next week, a person familiar with the matter said Friday [10-27-17]. The person cautioned that the president hasn’t made an official decision on the choice. But he is expected to make clear for […]
10/24/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The two men that President Trump is considering as replacements for Chairwoman Janet L. Yellen of the Federal Reserve have sharply different views on monetary policy, offering a stark test of Mr. Trump’s economic priorities. The choice pits a status quo candidate, a current Fed governor, Jerome H. Powell, against a […]
10/24/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/GOP/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump on Tuesday [10-24-17] asked Republican senators for a show-of-hands poll on two candidates he is considering to be the next chairman of the Federal Reserve. The president, who was on Capitol Hill at a Senate GOP caucus lunch, asked the group which candidate they preferred to lead the […]
10/23/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/MIKE PENCE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Kevin Warsh, a candidate for the Federal Reserve chairmanship, met with Vice President Mike Pence last week to talk about the central-bank job, according to a White House aide. Mr. Warsh visited Thursday [10-19-17]—the same day Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen was in the Oval Office interviewing for the same job […]
10/19/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/GOP/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “After criticizing the Federal Reserve for the past eight years, Republicans have a chance to change the course of the central bank when President Donald Trump nominates someone to take the helm in early 2018. But they are divided over which direction monetary policy should take. GOP efforts to subject the […]
10/16/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump plans to meet Thursday [10-19-17] with Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen to discuss the possibility of nominating her for a second term as central-bank chief, according to a person familiar with the matter. Ms. Yellen’s four-year term as chairwoman expires in early February. She is one of several […]
10/12/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump is nearing a decision on whom to pick to lead the Federal Reserve, and met Wednesday [10-11-17] with one of four candidates, according to people familiar with the matter. Mr. Trump met with Stanford University economist John Taylor, a White House official said. Mr. Taylor has criticized the […]
10/5/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Senate on Thursday [10-5-17] voted to confirm Randal K. Quarles as the Federal Reserve’s vice chairman for supervision, an important victory for the Trump administration in its campaign to reduce financial regulations put in place in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Mr. Quarles is the first person to […]
9/29/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/STEVEN MNUCHIN/TREASURY/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin met with former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh on Thursday [9-28-17] to discuss his potential nomination as the next Fed chairman, a White House official said, signaling that the West Wing is moving ahead with a process that the president has said […]
9/27/2017
CRISIS/FEDERAL RESERVE/PUERTO RICO: “The Federal Reserve Bank of New York said Wednesday [9-27-17] it is working to ensure banks in hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico have the cash they need to meet customer demand. While demand for cash is ‘extraordinarily high,’ the bank said that ‘we have adequate inventory to meet demand from depository institutions on the […]
9/18/2017
ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE: “The Federal Reserve resorted to a series of shock-and-awe stimulus campaigns to stabilize the economy after the financial crisis. Now the Fed is preparing the final move to unwind its support—and it wants to be as boring as possible. The central bank is likely to announce Wednesday [9-20-17] it will start slowly shrinking […]
9/6/2017
ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE/GARY COHN/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP PEOPLE: “President Donald Trump is unlikely to nominate Gary Cohn, his top economic adviser, as the next Federal Reserve chairman, according to people familiar with the president’s thinking, adding to the uncertainty over the U.S. central bank’s leadership and policies next year. Mr. Trump told The Wall Street Journal in July that […]
9/6/2017
ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE: “Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer announced his intention to resign Wednesday [9-6-17], months before his term as the central bank’s No. 2 official was due to expire in June 2018. Mr. Fischer, a respected economist and former head of the Bank of Israel, said his resignation was due to personal reasons and […]
8/27/2017
BANKING/ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE/NATIONAL DEBT: “Central bankers have been looking forward for years to a moment when the world economy is growing steadily again, allowing them to unwind extraordinary monetary stimulus from global markets. They are now in such a moment, but at the Federal Reserve’s annual retreat here over the weekend they found their attention turned […]
8/25/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE: “Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen defended the financial regulations enacted in the wake of the financial crisis that began a decade ago, while keeping the door open to modest changes in the postcrisis rules. Her speech Friday [8-25-17] at the U.S. central bank’s annual retreat in Grand Teton National Park came as the […]
8/24/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS: “The prospect of a second term for Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen won’t be on the agenda at the central bank’s annual retreat this week at Grand Teton National Park, but the question of whether she could be asked to stay on—and whether she would accept—will be hanging over the confab. Ms. Yellen […]
8/2/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/LABOR: “Eric Rosengren, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, said increasingly tight labor markets should keep the U.S. central bank on its path to gradually raise rates and start slowly shrinking its portfolio of bonds and other assets, despite a surprising pause in inflation pressures this spring. In an interview, Mr. Rosengren […]
7/24/2017
ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE: “The United States has a problem: not enough inflation. That notion is a bit of a head-scratcher. Most people don’t like inflation. They would prefer that a dollar tomorrow be worth the same as a dollar today. But a recent drop in inflation may be a sign of fresh economic weakness and is […]
7/20/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE: “A Federal Reserve-sponsored task force is preparing to unveil proposals by financial institutions, payments providers, trade groups and others to improve the decades-old U.S. systems for moving money electronically. The faster payments task force, which is set to publish a summary report of the work on Friday [7-21-17], rated 16 proposals that met […]
7/19/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE: “The Federal Reserve is likely to stand pat on policy when it concludes a two-day meeting next week, but it faces a debate about the future path of interest-rate increases because of a deepening puzzle over inflation. Officials will likely leave short-term rates unchanged and wait until September before announcing plans to slowly […]
7/19/2017
ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE: “Bond yields around the world have surged since the European Central Bank hinted last month that its bond buying was coming to an end, a replay of the ‘taper tantrum’ in 2013 when the Federal Reserve caught markets off guard with similar plans. Both episodes are fodder for a view widespread in markets, […]
7/10/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump plans to put his first mark on the Federal Reserve by nominating Randal Quarles, an investment-fund manager and former Republican Treasury official, to be the central bank’s top official in charge of regulating big banks. The choice of Mr. Quarles, expected for months and confirmed by a White […]
7/5/2017
FED/FEDERAL RESERVE: “Federal Reserve officials in June readied plans to start slowly shrinking the central bank’s large portfolio of bonds and other assets in the next few months, and the debate since then over when to launch the plan has increasingly pointed to September. Several officials said the Fed had sufficiently prepared markets to initiate […]
6/27/2017
ETHICS/FEDERAL RESERVE/NOMINATIONS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Trump administration is struggling to find a nominee for the Federal Reserve board with community banking experience, delaying plans to fill two other Fed vacancies, including a key regulatory post. The problem: They can’t find somebody willing to take the job. Ethics rules require Fed governors and their immediate family […]
6/12/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/TREASURY: “The Federal Reserve, which holds more bonds than any other investor, is planning how to shed some of them starting this year. And no one is too worried about it. The Fed is expected to announce in the near future a plan to gradually reduce its $4.5 trillion portfolio of Treasuries and mortgage-backed […]
04/14/2017
FEDERAL RESERVE/JANET YELLEN/POLITICS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “So Donald J. Trump tells The Wall Street Journal that he is no longer so sure he wants to replace Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen when her term is up in February. Why would he want to nominate her to for another four-year term? And would she accept? While understanding […]
2/22/2017
ECONOMY/FEDERAL RESERVE: “The next interest rate increase could be closer than it appears. That’s after documents released Wednesday [2-22-17] show that Federal Reserve officials spent their meeting three weeks ago consumed with the changes brought on by a new administration in the White House — concluding with a strong indication that another hike could be […]
2/10/2017
BANKING/FEDERAL RESERVE: “Daniel K. Tarullo, the Federal Reserve official who has led its efforts to strengthen financial regulation, announced on Friday that he would resign in early April. Mr. Tarullo’s departure from the Fed’s board of governors will leave three vacant seats on the seven-member board, offering President Trump an immediate opportunity to reshape the […]