Ideas the US economy had returned to a growth path that was sufficiently strong to permit the Federal Reserve to begin normalizing monetary policy have been challenged by the disappointing string of data. This will culminate with the first estimate of Q1 GDP on April 29. There still seems to be some downside risk to the consensus of 1.0% annualized growth. A few hours later the FOMC will release a statement following its two-day meeting. There will be no change in policy, but investors will be looking for clues that a June hike is also off the table. Expectations have already shifted away from June, and the Federal ... (full story)