In what was a widely anticipated decision, the FOMC elected to lift the target range for the federal funds rate 75 bps at the conclusion of its November policy meeting this week to a range of 3.75%-4.00%. We analyze the meeting in more detail in this week's Interest Rate Watch section. In short, we think the FOMC is prepared to slow the pace of tightening at future meetings, though it is not done tightening yet. The risk of not tightening enough and inflation becoming entrenched outweighs the risk of over-tightening. We still anticipate the FOMC will deliver a 50 bps rate hike in December, though the size of the hike depends largely on the incoming data. Specifically, the November employment report and two CPI reports released before the next policy meeting on December 14.
The October employment report closed out the week and showed employers continued to add workers at a rapid clip. Employers added 261K net new jobs in October, beating the consensus expectation for a 195K gain (chart). This also came on top of some upward revisions to past data, but the fever still looks to be breaking on hiring with the three-month average pace of hiring falling to the slowest pace since the start of 2021. Job gains were fairly broad-based across sectors, and the report is still consistent with a tight labor market, which we think reinforces the idea the FOMC will keep tightening policy.
We look for job growth to moderate further over the coming months. Job openings pressed higher in September, though month-to-month movements tend to be volatile. Most measures, including the job opening rate, hiring plans and the PMI employment sub-components, indicate demand for labor is topping out. But with hiring still solid to date, the FOMC continues to largely have cover to focus primarily on inflation. We'll get the consumer price data for October next Thursday and expect prices rose 0.6% over the month. Please see our Domestic Outlook section for more detail on our expectations for next week's release.
This Week's State Of The Economy - What Is Ahead? - 17 June 2022
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Jun 20, 2022
After last week\'s stronger-than-expected CPI, less surprising was the 75 point rate increase put forth by the Fed.
This Week's State Of The Economy - What Is Ahead? - 31 July 2020
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Aug 11, 2020
The resurgence in COVID-19 in much of the Sun Belt appears to have topped out, although cases are rising faster in some smaller mid-Atlantic states and in parts of Europe, Asia and Australia.
This Week's State Of The Economy - What Is Ahead? - 07 August 2020
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Aug 11, 2020
There were more signs of global recovery this week and PMI surveys improved further across the world.
This Week's State Of The Economy - What Is Ahead? - 12 August 2020
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Aug 15, 2020
The consumer has been a bright spot in the recovery so far, but with jobless benefits in flux and no clear path for the long-awaited stimulus bill, the support here could fade.
This Week's State Of The Economy - What Is Ahead? - 09 April 2021
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Apr 10, 2021
This week\'s economic data kicked of with a bang. The ISM Services Index jumped more than eight points to 63.7, signaling the fastest pace of expansion in the index\'s 24-year history.
This Week's State Of The Economy - What Is Ahead? - 17 April 2020
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Apr 18, 2020
Economic data from the early stages of the Great Shutdown have finally arrived, and they are as bad as feared. ‘Worst on record’ is about to become an all too common refrain in our commentary.
This Week's State Of The Economy - What Is Ahead? - 03 February 2023
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Feb 04, 2023
During January, payrolls jumped by 517K, the unemployment rate fell to 3.4% and average hourly earnings rose by 0.3%. The FOMC raised the fed funds target range by 25 bps to 4.5%-4.75% this week.
This Week's State Of The Economy - What Is Ahead? - 26August 2022
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Aug 29, 2022
I can understand how the opportunity to participate in lots of scintillating economic policy discussions could make fishing look exciting in comparison.
How Long Can US Businesses Remain Shut Down?
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Apr 29, 2020
The sudden stop in economic activity caused by the COVID-19 pandemic means that many businesses will need to rely on their cash reserves to survive the next few months.
This Week's State Of The Economy - What Is Ahead? - 22 January 2021
Wells Fargo Economics & Financial Report / Jan 23, 2021
Housing starts jumped 5.8% during December. Single-family starts soared 12%, while multifamily starts dropped 13.6%.
