12:43 PM EDT, 04/04/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The Federal Open Market Committee can afford to take its time when considering interest rate decreases, Richmond Federal Reserve President Tom Barkin said Thursday at the Home Building Association of Richmond. Barkin noted the recent signals in the data that have suggested stronger-than-expected inflation and slower-than-expected consumer spending but suggested that it was...

(Reuters) - Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Neel Kashkari said on Thursday that at the U.S. central bank's meeting last month he penciled in two interest rate cuts this year but if inflation continues to stall, none may be required by year end. If we continue to see inflation moving sideways, then that would make me question whether we need...

02:48 PM EDT, 04/04/2024 (MT Newswires) -- While inflation progress continues, more evidence is needed before the Federal Open Market Committee can consider rate reductions, Cleveland Federal Reserve President Loretta Mester said Thursday in an interview with the Global Interdependence Center. Mester said that she would like to see a couple more months of convincing inflation data to be comfortable...

(Reuters) - Hiring plans among U.S. small businesses in March were the weakest since May 2020 when pandemic shutdowns threw the economy into recession, dropping below a key threshold some economists see as a bellwether for the wider job market, a survey out on Thursday showed. A net 11% of firms surveyed by the National Federation of Independent Business last...