The Summer Rate Hike’s Off: Here’s What to Buy Now
June 13, 2016 at 06:00 AM EDT
It’s a done deal: an interest rate hike this month or next—a prospect that was already on life support—is officially DOA. The final blow? A dismal labor report showing just 38,000 jobs created in May, the fewest in six years. But that’s not the only thing that killed the June hike. Tack on inflation well below the Fed’s 2% target and an economy growing at a modest 2% clip, and there’s simply no reason to raise rates now. Futures markets agree, with traders calling for just a 4% chance of a June hike and only 1-in-4 odds in July. You have to go way out to December before a significant likelihood materializes (43% for a quarter-point, 19% for a half-point). June Rate Hike: On Ice ... Read more