US: Focus on Fed speak and CPI today – Rabobank

Analysts at Rabobank point out that today we will hear from Fed’s John Williams who will speak at an event in London.

Key Quotes

“Last week he reportedly said that interest rates are likely to stay low for an extended period of time due to “demographic changes, slow productivity growth, and demand for safe assets – all of which are unlikely to be reverse any time soon.” Potentially dovish remarks from Williams could be counterbalanced by Esther George who voted against all three rate cuts last year. On Monday we heard from other dissenter – Rosengren - who expressed his concerns about the impact of persistently low borrowing costs on inflation and financial stability.”

“Data wise, US CPI inflation is expected to accelerate to 2.4% y/y in December from 2.1%, but this is unlikely to change the predominant view in the market that the Fed will keep rates unchanged as the risk of a substantial increase in inflationary pressure is relatively low.”

“Investors will be looking for a fresh clues about the state of the US economy in earnings published by various US corporates.”