Select a category
Advertisement
Investopedia
1 h
11
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-2172944678-76c17b801f4f4de4b0a46df95e5c396b.jpg)
The Federal Reserve’s key interest rate is headed down in the coming months, but how far, and how fast? Fed Chair Jerome Powell may shed some light on the trajectory of rates in a speech Monday that is sure to be closely watched by financial market participants.Powell is scheduled to speak at the annual meeting of the National Association for Business Economics in Nashville. The title of the speech, “A View from the Federal Reserve Board,” offers few clues about what he might say, but it will be his first major speech since Sept. 18, when the Fed’s policy committee made the pivotal decision to sharply cut the central bank’s key interest rate for the first time since 2020.Fed officials, including Powell, have signaled the central bank intends to lower the fed funds rate in the months ahead, which will put downward pressure on borrowing costs for mortgages, credit cards, and all kinds of other loans. But It’s unclear how quickly they’ll do it.
Financial markets are split on whether the Fed will make its standard 25 basis point cut when the Federal Open Market Committee next meets Nov. 6-7, or whether they’ll follow up the super-sized September cut with another 50-point move. As of Friday afternoon, investors were pricing in a 55% chance of a larger cut, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, which forecasts interest rate movements based on fed funds futures trading data.Powell and other policymakers at the Fed have said their next moves will be informed by economic data on inflation, and especially the labor market. The Fed is aiming to calibrate rate cuts to encourage borrowing and spending enough to accelerate the economy and bolster the job market, but not cutting rates so much that it reignites high inflation. In recent months, inflation has fallen steadily while the unemployment rate has risen, putting pressure on the Fed to cut rates faster than they had previously anticipated.
Powell may also use the speech to assert the Fed’s credibility, and assure the public that the Fed is determined to keep inflation in check no matter what.
At a post-meeting press conference this month, Powell faced questions from reporters about why the Fed had cut interest rates sharply at a time when inflation was still running above the central bank’s 2% target and the unemployment rate was still relatively low by historical standards. At least one member of the Fed’s policy committee shared those concerns: Fed governor Michelle Bowman voted against the steep September rate cut, preferring a smaller cut instead.Since the decision, new economic data has strengthened the case that the U.S. economy is chugging along at a steady rate, not plunging into a recession and widespread job losses.
A scheduled revision to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures for the second quarter Thursday confirmed the economy was growing at a healthy 3% rate. Gross Domestic Income (GDI), another measure of economic growth, also grew steadily at an upwardly revised rate of 3.4%, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
“There is less uncertainty about where the economy has been with both GDP and GDI now telling the same story of robust economic growth over the last year,” Conrad DeQuadros, senior economic advisor at Brean Capital, wrote in a commentary. “ However, markets are unmoved by these data and are still pricing in 40 bps of rate cuts on November 7, which suggests that market participants do not see Fed policy as data dependent. Fed Chair Powell needs to give a strong performance at NABE next week exploring these issues.”
Do you have a news tip for Investopedia reporters? Please email us at [email protected]Read more on Investopedia
Regeneron-Sanofi Drug Wins FDA Approval To Treat COPD
Shares Of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals...
Investopedia
2 hrs
12
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-1258313730-0e4b70681116421db9e5998c346ca9a2.jpg)
Shares of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (REGN) and Sanofi (SNY) edged higher Friday after their chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) treatment received approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The drug, Dupixent, is the first biologic medicine approved in the U.S. for the treatment of COPD, a respiratory disease that restricts airflow and damages the lungs. The treatment showed a reduction of at least 30% in the annualized rate of moderate or severe COPD in a pair of Phase 3 studies, the companies reported.
Dupixent was previously approved for the treatment of other conditions, including atopic dermatitis and asthma.
Shares of Regeneron ticked up 0.2% Friday, while Sanofi shares listed in the U.S. rose 1.1%. The companies' stocks are up about 19% and 16%, respectively, since the start of the year.
Do you have a news tip for Investopedia reporters? Please email us at [email protected]Read more on Investopedia
Advertisement
Instablog9ja
6 hrs
14
Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State has approved construction of a modern psychiatric hospital in Obi Akpor Local Government Area.
Nyesom Wike, Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), his estranged godfather is from Rumuepirikom in Obio-Akpor. Both Wike and Fubara have been at crossroads over the control of Rivers State, with the minister accusing the governor of turning his back against those who helped him to the top.
Speaking at a reception organized for him by a group, the Ijaw Peoples Assembly, in Port Harcourt, on Saturday, Wike boasted that when the time comes, he would teach Fubara and his supporters a big lesson in the state.
He said: “Imagine in Rivers they are contemplating of APP. It is not about money. Money does not move. You can have all the money but if there is no capacity there is no capacity. All the things you see are people envious of our growth. We have defeated them severally and if opportunity comes again, we will defeat them We have not started politics, when the time comes, we will play politics. Our job is politics. Tell them to keep their party ready. We will teach them what is called politics.”
But responding at the Inter-denominational Church Thanksgiving Service organised as part of activities marking the 64th Independence Day Celebration of Nigeria at St. Paul’s Cathedral of the Anglican Communion at Garrison Junction, Port Harcourt, on Sunday, Fubara said what he did in one year outweighed the performance of his opponents in 8 years.
“They even say, they don’t know what we are doing. Let me remind them, it is Fubara that signed the paper to borrow from Zenith Bank the N200billion for the construction of the Port Harcourt Ring Road. So, it is my project. It is Fubara that awarded the Trans-Kalabari Road that they couldn’t do. They did only a bridge from Krakrama, but I am the one doing it: the complete span, and it is N225billion. I didn’t borrow.
It is this same Fubara that is building a General Hospital, which I also included a Psychiatric Hospital because they will need it very soon. So, tell them that what I did in one year is what they did in 8 years. It is only empty container that makes noise. If God has given you opportunity, eat your plantain and keep quiet. God will continue to give us the strength to do the best for our people, without fear.
Very soon, you will see what we are doing. It is not about doing roads to your business interest. I don’t have any business interest. Whatever I am doing, I am doing it for the people of Rivers State. We will not take any decision that we cannot defend. We won’t be part of anything that will bring any form of disgrace to our dear State. This State is important to us. It is the only thing that we have.
It is the beautiful pride. That is why they are struggling, coupled with the improvement in Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) we have done. That is why they are struggling, we know. But, do it with modesty, you don’t need to destr y the house.” Fubara said if his opponents continue to deride the grace of God on his life, they will continue to struggle for public recognition or approval. He said his policy in office is not to embark on “mere jamboree” of groundbreaking for projects but assured that any project started will be inaugurated and actually put to public use.
“So, please, I will beg everyone of you, God has given us this opportunity, we must safeguard it. They are the ones looking for a way to destroy it. “They didn’t believe we will get to this point, and I can tell you I had a reason for inviting all the candidates for the local government election for this service.”
Investopedia
7 hrs
13
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-2160287679-dc1ebfb60d9e49a5915dffd9969096c8.jpg)
Generac Holdings (GNRC), a producer of home generators and other emergency power solutions, has seen its shares gain as Hurricane Helene made landfall in the southeastern U.S.
“You are seeing people taking the situation into their own hands, whether it is backing up their own homes or business or doing something to produce their own power,” Generac CEO Aaron Jagdfeld said in an interview with last week.
Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida Thursday as a Category 4 storm and has since weakened to a tropical storm moving into Georgia and South Carolina. More than 4 million homes and businesses were without power Friday morning in the southeastern U.S., according to the tracking site poweroutage.us.
Generac’s stock price rose close to 2% Friday, and nearly 10% this week. With this week's gains, shares have climbed about 20% for the year so far.
In July, Generac had raised its full-year 2024 net sales guidance “[a]s a result of recent power outage activity, which includes the impact of major outage event Hurricane Beryl.” Generac shares rose 12% during the nearly two weeks of Hurricane Beryl’s impact.
“With only approximately 6% penetration of the addressable market of homes in the U.S., we believe there are significant opportunities to further penetrate the residential standby generator market as the clear leader in this category,” Jagdfeld said.
Do you have a news tip for Investopedia reporters? Please email us at [email protected]Read more on Investopedia
Instablog9ja
9 hrs
15
Bobrisky has said he prays he finds a true friend soon, as he shares motivational quotes on friendships.
He said a true friend may be someone who accepts you unconditionally, helps you grow, supports you in tough times, and increases your ability to love yourself. You may also do these things for them, showing them they mean as much to you as you do to them and becoming a better friend. He prays he found one.
Advertisement
Instablog9ja
10 hrs
9
The Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu on Sunday claimed that over 40 percent of Nigerians now enjoy 20 hours of electricity supply daily.
The Minister in a statement made available to Vanguard by his media aide, Bolaji Tunji, explained that the feat was achieved following certain revolutionary measures taken by the government to ensure that Nigerians enjoy more stable and regular electricity supply.
The Federal Government through the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, in April this year removed electricity subsidies for about two million customers in Band-A with an assurance of at least 20 hours of power supply daily. Data from NERC for the month of August showed that average power generation was 4,150 Megawatts. Nigeria has an estimated population of over 200 million people.
Adelabu said all these were achieved with the support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as part of his renewed hope agenda to galvanise the economy. Adelabu who reviewed his one year in office as part of activities to mark this year’s Independent Day Celebration said the increase in power supply was due to the radical and bold steps that were taken.
“This feat is as a result of many of the revolutionary measures being undertaken by the Power Minister, with the support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu”, he added. According to him, the President had consistently advocated that Nigeria can be great and achieve breakthrough in industrialization, through a stable and consistent power supply.
He said one of the major and significant achievements of his ministry within the last one year is that “today, we are generating over 5,500 megawatts of power”. He said the ministry is working to improve on this record, by the end of the year, as power supply constitutes one of the campaign promises of President Tinubu.
