Is the Fed changing its mind on interest rate cuts?

For
his
part,
Fed
chair
Jerome
Powell
still
expects
three
rate
cuts
to
arrive
in
2024,
even
if
he
gave
no
signal
last
week
of
a
timeline
for
rates
to
start
trending
lower.

Nonetheless,
he
continued
to
sound
a
hawkish
tone
on
bringing
inflation
down
despite
admitting
that
the
funds
rate
has
likely
topped
out
for
now.

“We
believe
that
our
policy
rate
is
likely
at
its
peak
for
this
type
of
cycle,
and
that
if
the
economy
evolves
broadly
as
expected,
it
will
likely
be
appropriate
to
begin
dialing
back
policy
restraint
at
some
point
this
year,”
he
said
at
the
post-meeting
press
conference.

“We
are
prepared
to
maintain
the
current
target
range
for
the
federal
funds
rate
for
longer
if
appropriate.”

Fed’s
changing
tone
took
some
market
watchers
by
surprise

Jack
BeVier
(pictured
top),
partner
at
the
Dominion
Financial
Services
lender,
told

Mortgage
Professional
America
that
he
had
been
surprised
by
the
Fed’s
apparent
pivot
to
a
less
cautious
tone
on
interest
rates
at
the
end
of
last
year,
with
Powell
now
appearing
to
walk
back
on
some
of
that
optimism.