2024-09-23
5 分钟Hello, Mike Bird here, co-host of Money Talks,
our weekly podcast on markets, the economy and business.
Welcome to Editor's Picks.
We've chosen an article from the latest edition of The Economist,
which we very much hope you'll enjoy.
The Federal Reserve's decision on September 18th to lower interest rates by half a percentage point to between 4.75% and 5% breaks the mould.
As the first cut by America's central bank since it lifted rates to quell inflation,
the shift marks the start of a monetary easing cycle.
It also represents a bet that inflation will soon be yesterday's problem and that action is required to support the labour market.
For the first time since 2005,
one of the Fed's governors in Washington dissented from the decision.
Michelle Bowman preferred to cut rates by a quarter point.
When the Fed raised rates between early 2022 and mid-2023,
it telegraphed the size of each rise in advance.
This time there was uncertainty about how big the reduction would be.
A week earlier,
market pricing implied roughly 65% odds that the Fed would cut rates by a quarter point and 35% odds of a half point.
By the day before the decision, pricing had flipped,
indicating a 65% probability of a half point cut.
That some investors, albeit a minority,