Economists Predict Fed Will Cut Rates Twice This Year, Express Concern Over Wash

BlockBeats News, March 13th, according to Bloomberg's survey, economists have postponed their expectations for the next Fed rate cut from March to June, but still expect two 25-basis-point cuts before the end of this year.

The 46 economists surveyed expect a faster pace of rate cuts than the current path priced by the futures market, and one more rate cut than the Fed officials' median forecast in December last year. Among the surveyed economists, nearly a third expressed concerns about Kevin Warsh, the chairman nominee appointed by Trump.

When asked whether they believe Warsh will be committed to achieving the Fed's 2% inflation target, 13% were uncertain and 18% answered "no." In the survey from December last year, economists expected the Fed to cut rates in March and September, while in the survey conducted from March 6th to 11th (after the Middle East conflict broke out), respondents expected rate cuts in June and October. The median of the survey shows that economists expect interest rates to be in the range of 3% to 3.25% by the end of this year. (Kinetic Mind)