Interpreting the Fed's Interest Rate Statement: 3 Key Words
As you already know, the Federal Reserve has decided to keep interest rates at 0%-0.25%. This was expected for the October meeting, but what made this meeting different was the Fed’s mentioning of the December meeting and the way it hinted that a rate hike in December is not off the table. Markets reacted in a big way, especially in gold and the U.S. dollar, but there is more to this story if you read between the lines.
The Fed’s Real Message
Prior to the October meeting, the odds of a rate hike in December were 34%. After the October meeting, the odds of a December rate hike moved up to 47%.
The Federal Reserve clearly stated that if they see a move toward 2% inflation and maximum employment, then a rate hike would be the correct move. This led to pundits on television and the internet sounding the alarm, and equities took a hit. But the Federal Reserve wasn’t really saying that there was an increased chance of a rate hike in December. Instead, it was taking out an insurance policy just in case economic conditions were surprisingly better than expected, which would prevent a rate hike from being a surprise and spooking markets in a big way. Since the Federal Reserve played it this way, a rate hike would not be a shock. (For more, see: Could a Rate Hike Send Stocks Higher?)
However … that’s still not the most interesting information that came out of the October Fed meeting.
Attention to Detail
Wall Street is reading the October Fed meeting in a specific way, which is that the Federal Reserve shifted from concern about the global economy and its impact on the U.S. economy to “just monitoring” the global economic situation. This was perceived as bullish for the U.S. economy (not stocks), especially since it was accompanied by the news that consumer spending and business investment were solid.
If these two trends of consumer spending and business investment were perceived as sustainable, then the Federal Reserve wouldn’t hesitate to move back to a normal interest rate environment. And there is one statement that really indicates what’s really taking place in the U.S. economy: “We see the economy expanding at a moderate pace with appropriate policy.” (For more, see: Will Consumer Spending Save 2015?)
Did you happen to notice the last three words in that statement: “with appropriate policy”?
What does this statement tell us? It tells us that the domestic economy isn’t capable of sustainable growth on its own two feet. If that were the case, then we wouldn’t have seen record-low interest rates for six years. (For more, see Timing the Fed Interest Rate Hike.)
Any economic environment where excessive leverage is encouraged, speculators are rewarded, and savers are punished, is an unhealthy economic environment.
When people say that the current economic environment isn’t like 2007-2009, which featured the subprime mortgage crisis, they’re correct. It’s worse. (For more, see: Why Investors Should Consider Cash Right Now.)
That comment might infuriate some investors, but while the subprime mortgage crisis was an absolute disaster with an almost immediate impact once people knew the truth, this is a global deflationary environment, which is much more powerful and impactful over the long haul. The investing impact won’t be immediate because central banks around the world will continue to attempt to keep the global economy afloat, but this will eventually unwind. Unlike last time, when this reality comes to fruition, central banks will be out of ammo due to peak liquidity. (For more, see: Are We in Bubble Territory?)
The simplest way to explain this is that this is a global problem, not just a domestic one. Instead of big U.S. banks being insolvent; it's nations. The impact will be much longer-lasting, yet fortunately not ever-lasting.
You can’t prevent the effect of aging populations on consumer spending. Central banks can only postpone the inevitable. The problem is that these policies make the problem worse by encouraging leverage, which leads to excessive debt accumulation. (For more, see: Is a Rate Hike Already Priced Into the Market?)
The Bottom Line
Remember the three words: “with appropriate policy.” Think about what that means. It means that businesses and consumers aren’t capable of lifting those weights without steroids. This can lead to exceptional performance in the short term, but the eventual result will be deflated muscles. Contrary to what Ben Bernanke believes, it would have been better not to have bailed out the banks with taxpayer money and to have instead allowed America to remain a truly capitalist nation. We would have found a way to survive. America always does. This wouldn’t have prevented current population and consumer trends, but it would have avoided the beginning of the cheap-money era, which will eventually fuel disastrous results.
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