The Federal Open Market Committee got a last glimpse into the economy ahead of Wednesday’s policy announcement, and the picture was of slowing growth and decelerating inflation pressures.
Reports showed the housing market struggling, wage increases slowing, consumers growing gloomier, and manufacturing in one region of the country faltering. Taken together, Wednesday’s data points to “sluggish growth, cooling wage pressure and a still soggy, but not collapsing, housing market,” Robert Kavcic, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets, said in a commentary.
In addition to the reports on the state of the U.S. economy, the International Monetary Fund showed an improved outlook for global inflation.
However, these factors weren’t enough to shift most Federal Reserve watchers’ expectations for a 25-point rate hike on Wednesday. The mounting evidence of an economic slowdown could have a greater impact on the future…
