The Federal Reserve will issue a key Decision on interest rates later this Afternoon followed by remarks from Fed Chair Drome Powell now the central bank Is not expected to cut rates because key Economic data shows inflation it just Persists across the country the loss Rate hike was in July 2023 and they've Remained steady since JD Durkin is here With us in studio 57 he's a CBS News Contributor and financial journalist JD Uh talk to us about what e economists Are really looking for particularly when We hear from Fed chair Jerome Powell Later today I don't think it'll be much Of a surprise what the actual decision Will be at this point because as you Said they are AEL inflation Still Remains very high so it seems like a Foregone conclusion there won't be a Decrease or a bump up in interest rates But it's really I think the context of What chairman Powell has to say how Highly is he prioritizing some of these Stubborn inflation readings or is he More inclined to say well because in the Longterm we've seen progress get closer To that 2% Target we still feel as if It's appropriate to at least uh somewhat Expect that we'll have interest rates Later on in the year we always talk About the importance of not just the Policy decision which comes out right at 2 o'clock but then of course that
Question and answer portion that comes Out at 2:30 sometimes on fed days we Have these what we call Dot Plot Projections the anonymous survey we Don't get one of those today so it'll be Really interesting I think for investors To pay attention to how does Powell Change basically what happened the The Dot Plot we got a month ago is he Inclined to say that data is already That old four or five weeks because of The stubborn inflation readings we've Had ever since so what is then the key Data that would lead the FED to make the Decision it seems like most people want To cut rates because from everything You've just laid out we're just not There yet yeah we have so many acronyms We've got CPI data we've got PPI and as If that's not enough we've also got pce Data that last one personal consumptions Expenditures comes from the Commerce Department yeah that it is it is still High but core pce meaning you strip away Some of the really volatile elements Like food and energy those things can be Suscepti to extreme weather patterns Things like that core PC is probably the Most important number if there is one And that one at least the good news is That is the closest to the 2% Target Currently at 2.8% and chairman Powell Has been incredibly consistent these Last few years to say core PC is
Probably the one we look most closely at And that'll be something that economists And investors are very eager to listen To him talk more about this afternoon JD I want to get your take on something Because axios is reporting that treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is going to be Pushing for the Federal reserves Independence why is the why is the Autonomy actually a question right now Because the FED is independent uh yes it Is however it's also an election year Right and I think a lot of people want To be very careful kind of not to mix This kind of Muddy uh future there with With electoral politics and the Central Bank in theory the central bank is Supposed to operate completely Independent of political forces you also Have former president and and and now Republican nominee Donald Trump he Historically has not maintained that Independence he's been very quick to Criticize fed officials he has said oh If I become president Jay Powell is out Of a job and he's also he's he's played A little bit of this game in his Interviews I've noticed where he says Well you know if the Central Bank Cuts Rates it's only because they want to Help Joe Biden aside from the reality That if they cut rates it's because Inflation is actually doing what it's Supposed to be doing because Janet
Yellen is a former fed official herself She used to lead the FED like Jay Powell Does now I think she's inclined to use This opportunity on Friday in Sedona Arizona to remind American voters that That Independence is very important and Keep that top of Mind as we inch closer To the election good to fact check some Of those comments all right JD thanks Thanks JD
