An economic slowdown was expected in 2019, and the data prove the prediction was correct. Now softening consumer spending could portend the need for the Federal Reserve to ease policy at some point.
The Leading Economic Index fell 0.3% in December to 111.2, while the coincident index rose 0.1% and the lagging index dipped 0.1%, the Conference Board reported Thursday.
George Boyan, president of Leumi Investment Services, discusses negative interest rates, recession, and what challenges the Fed faces in the coming year. Gary Siegel hosts.
Peter Ireland, an economics professor at Boston College and a member of the Shadow Open Market Committee, discusses why the Fed’s 2019 “reversal” made sense, the economy, low inflation, how referencing a rule could help the Fed with monetary policy, and the biggest challenge facing the central bank. Gary Siegel hosts.
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