The Federal Reserve raised interest rates again on Wednesday, this time by 0.75%.
The Fed warned that it would do this throughout 2022 to combat inflation, which is running out of control at a 40-year high. The stock market approved of this move and rallied higher on this news.
Fed chair Jerome Powell could not say whether this year’s previous rate hikes are doing what they hope, which is slow inflation. “There is some evidence we are, at this time,” he said. The next rate hike is due in September.
Later today, U.S. Gross Domestic Product data will be released and the White House has not done a good job of hiding its nerves on the matter. Economists define a “recession” as two consecutive quarters of GDP loss. That is a very likely scenario, which means we’d be able to use a word that the Democrats don’t want to use leading into an important mid-term election.
Don’t worry though, Conan O’Brien proposed a definition to set our minds at ease.
