Federal Reserve’s Williams emphasizes restoring inflation to 2% target, signaling prolonged pressure on risk assets

The post Fed’s Williams: Inflation is still ‘far too high’ appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Federal Reserve (Fed) Bank of New York President John Williams said in the Future of Market Liquidity and Functioning Workshop in New York on Thursday that inflation remains “far too high,” while stressing that policymakers are actively debating different inflation scenarios as energy prices, artificial intelligence investment and productivity trends shape the outlook. Key takeaways: Inflation is still “far too high,” keeping the Federal Reserve focused on the risks to price stability. Markets still expect Oil prices to decline over the next six to 12 months. Monetary policy remains focused on how energy prices feed through into inflation. AI investment is currently driving inflation, adding to demand and cost pressure. The Fed is actively debating various inflation scenarios as uncertainty remains elevated. Williams said the latest Fed Minutes captured a “collective reaction function,” refl

The post Could the Fed Buy Stocks? Analysts Say Bitcoin Wins If It Does appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Eric Balchunas says the Fed may buy equity ETFs to backstop market downturns. 55% of Americans now own stocks, with Trump Accounts set to add 28 million more. Sun said improving liquidity and lower risk premiums could boost Bitcoin and major cryptocurrencies.  The Federal Reserve may purchase equity ETFs to support the US stock market during the next major downturn, an analyst said, a scenario that crypto researchers say would indirectly benefit Bitcoin and major digital assets. The Case for Fed Equity Purchases Eric Balchunas, Senior ETF Analyst, published a note arguing that the US stock market has effectively become too large and too politically important to allow a prolonged collapse. Approximately 55% of Americans currently own stocks, the highest rate in the world. Trump Accounts are set to bring an estimated 28 million additional people into equity ownership. Social secur

The post Equities: Growth downgrades and rotation theme – BNY appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. BNY’s Geoff Yu notes the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has trimmed its 2026 global growth forecast to 3.0%, with uneven impacts across energy exporters, tech economies and low-income importers, influencing global equities. The disinflation trend appears stalled as headline inflation is projected to re-accelerate before easing. Yu sees markets wrestling with stretched valuations, fading momentum and a shift from acceleration to consolidation. IMF downgrades and stagflation concerns “The International Monetary Fund has inched its 2026 global growth forecast down again to a sluggish 3.0%. Growth is projected to rebound to 3.4% in 2027, but that is still below ‌the average of 3.5% seen in 2024 and 2025.” “Global headline inflation is seen rising from 4.1% in 2025 to 4.7% in 2026 before easing to 3.9% in 2027, suggesting the disinflation trend has stalled.” “Stagflation risks remain in pro

The post Fed: Hawkish minutes keep upside rate risks – ING appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. ING strategists Michiel Tukker and Benjamin Schroeder note that the Federal Reserve’s June minutes confirmed a more hawkish stance despite an unchanged policy rate. They highlight that nine officials pencilled in higher rates by year-end and that most see further policy firming as likely if inflation stays elevated due to AI-driven demand, high energy prices and tariffs, though ING’s base case expects moderation. June minutes reinforce hawkish Fed stance “This more upbeat take on the economy and the labour market was also reflected in the more hawkish stance of the Fed, which was just confirmed by the minutes of the June meeting.” “While voting unanimously to keep rates on hold, that meeting saw nine Fed officials pencilling in higher rates by the end of this year.” “Most officials agreed that “some policy firming would likely be warranted” in a scenario in which inflation remained elevated

The post Confirmed: ECB Accounts reveal growing concerns over inflation risks appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. The European Central Bank (ECB) released the accounts of its latest monetary policy meeting on Thursday, revealing growing concern among policymakers over persistent inflationary risks. The discussions show a consensus within the Governing Council that the risks surrounding the inflation outlook are skewed to the upside relative to the ECB staff’s baseline projections. The accounts indicate that headline inflation is expected to rise further over the summer and remain well above the 2% target through the first half of 2027. This outlook comes despite the projections already embedding almost three 25-basis-point interest rate hikes. Policymakers also noted that the outlook could prove even more challenging if energy prices do not decline in line with futures market expectations. Under that scenario, above-target inflation would likely become considerably more persistent. Th

AI-driven inflation could necessitate higher interest rates, impacting economic growth and potentially altering investment strategies. The post Federal Reserve Bank of New York president warns AI demand could drive inflation appeared first on Crypto Briefing.

The post Fed: Divergent inflation paths shape rate outlook – Societe Generale appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Societe Generale’s Jan Groen notes that the June Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes confirmed a hawkish hold, with the Summary of Economic Projections (SEP) showing an even split between members favoring unchanged or lower rates and those preferring hikes. The Fed sees inflation as too high and the labor market as durably stable, but is divided on how long elevated inflation will persist, which drives differing policy rate views. Committee split on inflation persistence “We had a hawkish hold at the June FOMC meeting with the June update of the SEP indicating an even split between Committee members that wanted to keep rates on hold or cut vs. members who wanted to raise rates.” “Today’s release of the minutes of that meeting did not contain any major surprises and it confirmed the hawkish undertone from the post-meeting communications.” “Where there was disagreem

The Fed's focus on market behavior over fixed reserve targets may lead to more adaptive monetary policies, impacting financial stability and investor strategies. The post Federal Reserve’s John Williams says ample reserves are a vibe, not a number appeared first on Crypto Briefing.