U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s confident press conference following the March meeting coupled with revised Fed projections suggest Fed officials are determined to cut interest rates this year – most likely starting in June. Fed officials signaled that it would take a dramatic turn of events to knock them off this course. The median interest rate forecast for 2024 did not change from three 25-basis-point (bp) rate cuts by the end of 2024, despite upward revisions to the inflation forecasts. We believe the very modest upward adjustment in the expected path of interest rates past 2024, despite a strong U.S. ... (full story)