Jobs Data Giving Recession Vibe. Is the Fed Late to Act (Again)?

5 авг.

Why does it seem like the Fed is playing catch-up with the economy? In 2021 and 2022, the US central bank was jamming stimulus at a fast clip. Suddenly it stopped and reversed course to raise interest rates at never-before-seen speed (that’s when officials were saying inflation was transitory). Now, the skyrocketing interest rates are threatening to derail the economy. Or worse — throw it in a recession.


The red-hot US labor market is no more. Or at least there wasn’t anything red-hot for America’s workers and job seekers in July (except for maybe the coast-to-coast summer heat). And now financial markets are in limbo.

America’s employers added just 114,000 new hires to the workforce — a far cry from the expected 174,000 and even that consensus view was soft. The bigger-then expected slump in US jobs growth fanned concerns over a flailing economy and there was one major player to pin the blame on — the Federal Reserve.

What’s the Fed?

The Federal Reserve, or just the Fed, is the central bank of the United States. Its daily grind is to keep the economy from veering off a cliff or overheating like a meme stock on WallStreetBets. The Fed is currently headed by Jerome Powell, or Jay Powell, or even JPow if you’re cool enough, and serves a dual mandate of maximum employment and stable prices.

For about a year, markets have been building up the conviction that the Federal Reserve should start thinking about cutting rates. But for months, the Fed didn’t even think about talking about cutting rates as a flurry of economic indicators was more or less suggesting that one slash might be a good idea. And now markets fear it may be too late for that.

The steep drop in the employment figure for July suggested that the economy has started to crack under the pressure of interest rates sitting at a 23-year high of 5.50%. When rates are high they make borrowing more expensive and discourage businesses and consumers from taking out loans to run their lives better. Instead, they shove their cash in deposit accounts and generate passive, risk-free yield. In a nutshell, high rates = economic contraction; low rates = economic expansion.

When rates stay higher for longer, the Fed runs the risk of tilting the economy into the very recession it is fiercely trying to avoid.

Talk About Bad Timing

The timing for that jobs data couldn’t have been more inconvenient. July’s nonfarm payrolls arrived just two days after the Fed praised the growth of the economy and voted against reducing its benchmark interest rate. To defend this decision, Chairman Jay Powell said that his clique of top central bankers need more good data that shows inflation is heading down toward the bank’s 2% goal. He also went on to say that he “wouldn’t like to see material further cooling in the labor market.”

The press conference after that rate call did end on a high note. The Fed boss noted that an interest rate cut was on the table at the next meeting slated for mid-September. The issue, however, is whether a single 25-basis-point cut, as communicated, will be enough. Markets have already ramped up bets for a juicier 50-basis-point reduction to borrowing costs — a more aggressive monetary policy measure that will provide a stronger lean against a faltering economy.

And while the difference between jobs added and jobs expected might be a factor, the severe pullback seems more about investors throwing a tantrum. "You should've cut rates, now deal with our unusually strong reaction as we make a statement," kind of play.

The painful scenario where the Fed may have fallen behind the curve shook Wall Street and spread into global markets. Stocks in the US are in a free fall. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite slipped into correction territory, dropping 10% from its peak in mid-July.

Tech giants, the main driver of the broad-based gains across the major US indexes, are heavily battered. But the selloff is widespread, jolting everything from stocks, to the US dollar to Bitcoin.

Add to this an earnings season weighed by investor concerns over spending on artificial intelligence and you’ve got quite a few things to consider before you jump into your favorite stock out there.

What Do You Think?

Do you think the Fed will trim rates by a bigger 50-basis-point cut in September or even introduce an urgent interest rate cut before their next regular meeting? And are you comfortable betting on beaten-down equities across the board? Let us know your comments below!