Softer U.S. macro data do not present a clear case for an imminent interest rate cut, but persistent trade tensions may prove disruptive enough to warrant a course correction, senior Federal Reserve economists told MNI last week. Officials at the Richmond and Dallas Fed banks said in interviews that, in aggregate, the past few months' employment, consumer spending and other indicators look strong, even as they noted softness in recent manufacturing, investment and other data. Given that the economy was widely expected to lose momentum this year after a fiscal stimulus-fueled growth spurt, some sluggishness is to be ... (full story)