Futures climb as Fed allays rate-hike worries
While Fed chair Jerome Powell indicated that stubbornly high inflation would see a long-expected U.S. rate cut pushed back, he refused to entertain talk that rates might actually need to go up again. Money markets see a 58% chance of the first rate cut of at least 25 basis points (bps) being delivered in September, but have priced in a greater 69% chance of a cut in November, according to CME FedWatch tool. "The Fed's official statement did acknowledge a 'lack of further progress' in inflation reduction in recent months," Preston Caldwell, chief U.S. economist at Morningstar, said.
