JACKSON HOLE, WYO – Fed chairman Jerome Powell must have said something the market liked yesterday during his opening address for the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s annual Economic Policy Symposium.
Following Powell’s Friday morning speech, the Dow soared 120 points and the S&P closed at a record high. The traditional Friday morning address has been viewed in year’s past as a potential policy-setting moment.
Powell did not drop any bombshells nor did he mention Trump or provide much in the way of diverting from a path of gradual interest rate hikes. The president previously upbraided Powell and the Fed via Twitter for raising rates while the economy is humming along.
Powell said it would be slow and steady with interest rates—one, maybe two more incremental increases this year—in order to keep inflation in check.
The symposium began Thursday and runs through the weekend. It has become an annual retreat for bankers since shifting to Jackson Hole in 1981 with the focus more on global economic issues.
The theme for the 2018 Symposium is “Changing Market Structure and Implications for Monetary Policy.” It is the Kansas City Fed’s 42nd such gathering, and the 37th since moving the event to Jackson Lake Lodge in Grand Teton National Park. Former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker, a fly-fishing enthusiast, suggested the annual gathering move to Jackson Hole decades ago.
Past Symposium themes:
2018: Changing Market Structure and Implications for Monetary Policy
2017: Fostering a Dynamic Global Economy
2016: Designing Resilient Monetary Policy Frameworks for the Future
2015: Inflation Dynamics and Monetary Policy
2014: Re-Evaluating Labor Market Dynamics
