Fed comfortable with how growth in the US economy is unfolding for now - CIBC

eFXdata reports that CIBC Research discusses its reaction to FOMC policy statement.

"The Fed left interest rates unchanged as expected today, with only minor alterations being made to the statement, suggesting that the Fed is comfortable with how growth in the US economy is unfolding for now.

The only notable change to the statement was the characterization of household spending, which is now seen as rising at a moderate pace rather than strong pace. Despite the recent softer readings on inflation, the Fed sees it as returning to target ahead. The rate on excess reserves was raised to 1.60% from 1.55%, but that does not represent a change in the stance of monetary policy, rather it is just a technical adjustment meant to guide the rate back to the midpoint of the target range. In a separate action, the Fed authorized the open market desk to execute repo operations at least through April, another technical adjustment to ensure that there are enough reserves in the system to prevent a disruption to repo markets," CIBC notes.

"Given that the changes to the statement were minimal, market reaction should remain muted. Attention will now turn to the press conference, with markets awaiting Powell's interpretation of the risks around the economy, including the impacts of recent trade developments and possibly coronavirus," CIBC adds.