Headline

Fed’s Bostic: Businesses say that hiring practices are normalizing, as is the ability to pass along price increases.
Fed’s Bostic: The current pace of balance sheet normalization is appropriate. The Fed remains in a situation of ample reserves.
Fed’s Bostic: I will be looking for early signs that changes in unemployment are starting to accelerate. I am not seeing it yet.
Fed’s Bostic: I sees an initial rate cut in the third quarter.
Fed’s Bostic: There is still space for wages to grow without inflation.
Fed’s Bostic: The labor markets remain strong in the aggregate and suggest continued momentum in the economy.
Fed’s Bostic: Business contacts continue to say they are in hiring mode.
Fed’s Bostic: Labor market risks are much more balanced, but many sectors are not showing growth.
Fed’s Bostic: Inflation and employment mandates are not yet in conflict.
Fed’s Bostic: sees 50 basis points in rate cuts in 2024
Fed’s Bostic: I am comfortable with the current rate level.
Fed’s Bostic: The outlook now is not for inflation to rebound. But the Fed still needs to pay attention.
Fed’s Bostic: Policy will still need to be restrictive at the end of the year. But progress on inflation will warrant lower rates.
Fed’s Bostic: Concentrated job growth means slowing is occurring, the question is if job growth overall hits a cliff.
Fed’s Bostic: The topline job numbers have been pretty strong, but the recent strength has been focused in a relatively small part of the economy.
Fed’s Bostic: At this moment, I am not comfortable declaring victory. The Fed needs to remain diligent and short run attentive.
Fed’s Bostic: We’re on path to 2% inflation today, the goal is to stay on the path.
Fed’s Bostic: At this point, shorter-term measures of inflation, such as over three-six-months, are more important. They are pointing in a positive direction.
Fed’s Bostic: Many economic measures are back at levels seen in the years immediately before the pandemic.
Fed’s Bostic: Goods inflation is back to pre-pandemic levels. Services inflation is moving more slowly and not expecting big drops.
Fed’s Bostic: Families are catching up to past price increases the pain of higher prices is easing and sentiment should follow.
Fed’s Bostic: Rise in unemployment has been ‘far less’ than would be typical
Fed’s Bostic: The Fed can let restrictive policy continue to work to slow inflation, I expect the process will remain orderly.
Fed’s Bostic: The Fed is in a very strong position right now.
Fed’s Bostic: The rise in unemployment has been far less than what would typically be the case given the reduction in inflation.
Fed’s Bostic Inflation has come down more than I expected.

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Transcript

Skipping this one. Nothing particularly useful. The headlines covered it.

Call with reporters

Bostic on Monday repeated his expectation for two rate cuts this year, and told reporters after the event that he expects the first cut in the third quarter; Bostic also told reporters it’s an “open question” if and when the Fed should alter the pace at which it reduces its portfolio of assets, adding that the current pace is appropriate.

(Reported by BBG)