San Francisco Fed President Expects Rate Cuts This Year: 'Policy Adjustments Will Be Necessary'

BY Benzinga | ECONOMIC | 08/06/24 09:43 AM EDT

San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly expects a cut to interest rates at some point this year.

"Policy adjustments will be necessary in the coming quarter,” she said during a forum in Hawaii. “How much that needs to be done and when it needs to take place, I think that's going to depend a lot on the incoming information.”

Declining inflation will probably prompt the Fed to cut rates, as markets expect significant cuts when it meets on Sept. 18 and beyond, CNBC reported.

"But from my mind, we've now confirmed that the labor market is slowing and it's extremely important that we not let it slow so much that it turns itself into a downturn,” Saly added.

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Daly made these comments after the Fed said it was keeping rates unchanged at its July 31 meeting. The U.S. jobs report for July showed unemployment rising to 4.3% on Friday.

Wall Street saw its biggest fall in nearly two years on Monday as investors worried about a slowing U.S. economy and the Fed’s decision to keep rates the same.

In the following two days, consecutive weak reports on layoffs, manufacturing and job creation generated a scare that the Fed is moving too slowly.

Daly, who holds a seat on the Federal Open Market Committee, said the Fed will ensure that it carries out its dual mandate of stable prices and full employment.

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee told CNBC on Monday that the Fed’s “restrictive rates” policy does not make sense.

The economy is not overheating, Goolsbee said.

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In general the bond market is volatile, and fixed income securities carry interest rate risk. (As interest rates rise, bond prices usually fall, and vice versa. This effect is usually more pronounced for longer-term securities.) Fixed income securities also carry inflation risk and credit and default risks for both issuers and counterparties. Unlike individual bonds, most bond funds do not have a maturity date, so avoiding losses caused by price volatility by holding them until maturity is not possible.

Lower-quality debt securities generally offer higher yields, but also involve greater risk of default or price changes due to potential changes in the credit quality of the issuer. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to loss.

Before investing, consider the funds' investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus or, if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully.

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