© 2024 Arizent. All rights reserved.

Yellen says market expectations can complement Fed's policy

(Bloomberg) -- Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen refrained from endorsing current expectations among traders for Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts, while saying that markets can sometimes complement policymakers' actions.

"The markets anticipate future Fed moves based on their reading of incoming data," Yellen told reporters between meetings with government officials in Mexico City on Wednesday. "That's a healthy reaction in a way that — if markets are thoughtful when reading the data — can be helpful as a complement to monetary policy."

But, she added, "the Fed is going to take whatever action they think it appropriate, and the state of markets is something that feeds into that."

Investors are pricing in more than a 50% chance the Fed will lower borrowing costs in March, and expect the central bank's benchmark rate will fall to around 4% by the end of 2024. The benchmark is currently in a range between 5.25% and 5.5%.

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com

Bloomberg News
Treasurys Securitization Federal Reserve
MORE FROM ASSET SECURITIZATION REPORT