May 21st, 2019

Rates have made their way into some sate of limbo recently, and even experts aren’t sure which direction they should expect them to go. Take Atlanta Fed’s President Raphael Bostic, who recently stated a rate increase or a rate cut are equally likely this year. The Fed has previously stated they want to practice “patience”, yet with signs of slowing economic growth, a US-China trade war and the president calling for a 1-point rate cut, you can see how things are in the gray. According to Bostic, “There are a lot of risks out there which if they come to fruition might have the economy weaken. If that happens, then a rate cut might be appropriate. But there are also a lot of sources of uncertainty that if they are resolved in particular ways the economy might actually get a whole lot stronger, which could suggest we might want to do a rate hike.’’ Overall, it’s not a bad place to be in, but it’s important to keep an eye out for whatever is ahead.