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Economy
Another Increase in USA Fed Funds Rate
2022-12-15
[CNBC] The Federal Reserve on Wednesday raised its benchmark interest rate to the highest level in 15 years, indicating the fight against inflation is not over despite some promising signs lately.

Keeping with expectations, the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee voted to boost the overnight borrowing rate half a percentage point, taking it to a targeted range between 4.25% and 4.5%. The increase broke a string of four straight three-quarter point hikes, the most aggressive policy moves since the early 1980s.
as others have noted, the increase in rate this year has been steep but it started from near zero --- the average rate over the past 50 years has been about 5%
Posted by:Lord Garth

#9  There is so much money floating around

Well, when you can call up the Fed and basically get near 0 interest money anytime, yeah. Call up the Fed and be told it will be 10%, they'll start looking elsewhere.

If everyone has so much savings, why is credit card debt now reaching record levels?
Posted by: Procopius2k   2022-12-15 16:52  

#8  What happened to the days when you got a toaster if you opened an account?
Posted by: DooDahMan   2022-12-15 13:49  

#7  they really don't need your deposits

Hell, sone EU banks are charging customers to keep their money and lots of US banks want to start. I suspect they will need some kind of go-ahead from the FDIC to do it, and I imagine our GOPe betters, having just gotten trashed on their effort to do lame duck amnesty, might see it as a viable punishment in the next Congress.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2022-12-15 13:46  

#6  Tom

True the interest rate on regular svg accounts is near zero.

However, some banks have created 'preferred savings' accounts paying 3%+/yr.

Also 6 month Certificate of Dep are going for nearly 5%/yr.

Interestingly, the long T instruments (30yr) paying only about 3.5%
Posted by: Lord Garth   2022-12-15 13:44  

#5  Normally tightening by the Fed, which has been going for a year or so, would lead to a recession. However, the Fed did throw $3 trillion into the economy back in 2022 and has only taken about $400 billion out. Yes, this is tightening--but against a backdrop of extraordinary and profligate looseness in 2020. This money is still in the economy, and the Fed has a long way to go to sop it up. https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/bst_recenttrends.htm

By the way, this is the reason why banks are paying you so little in interest. There is so much money floating around that they really don't need your deposits. So why pay for them?

Posted by: Tom   2022-12-15 13:27  

#4  I don't think the economists expected a US President to reduce the flow of oil in the US making the country dependent on foreign oil again.
Posted by: Vespasian Ebboting9735   2022-12-15 10:50  

#3  as others have noted, the increase in rate this year has been steep but it started from near zero --- the average rate over the past 50 years has been about 5%

Yes, and until just recently, economists were saying it would be ZIRP or even negative rates for as far into the future as anyone could imagine.

But, oh, yeah, that was economists saying that...
Posted by: M. Murcek   2022-12-15 10:09  

#2  I second Procopius2k remark above!

Posted by: Seeking Cure For Ignorance   2022-12-15 09:58  

#1  Need to raise it near 10% and tell the banks to start offering something more than .02% on savings.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2022-12-15 08:39  

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