Why hundreds of U.S. banks may be at risk of failure

Why hundreds of U.S. banks may be at risk of failure

Hundreds of small and regional banks across the U.S. are feeling stressed. “You could see some banks either fail or at least, you know, dip below their minimum capital requirements,” Christopher Wolfe, managing director and head of North American banks at Fitch Ratings, told CNBC. Consulting firm Klaros Group analyzed about 4,000 U.S. banks and … Read more

Fund manager says there is no economic rationale for Fed rate cuts

Fund manager says there is no economic rationale for Fed rate cuts

The only reason the Federal Reserve might be tempted to cut rates would be to help the U.S. cover interest payments for the national debt, according to fund manager Freddie Lait. His comments come ahead of the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy decision on Wednesday, which could shed some light on the U.S. central bank’s rate … Read more

Worker pay rose more than expected in Q1 in another sign of persistent inflation

Worker pay rose more than expected in Q1 in another sign of persistent inflation

Employee compensation costs jumped more than expected to start the year, providing another danger sign about persistent inflation, while consumer confidence hit its lowest level in nearly two years. The employment cost index, which measures worker salaries and benefits, gained 1.2% in the first quarter, the Labor Department reported Tuesday. That was higher than 0.9% … Read more

All data shows inflation isn’t going away, making things tough on Fed

All data shows inflation isn’t going away, making things tough on Fed

A customer shops for food at a grocery store on March 12, 2024 in San Rafael, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images News | Getty Images The last batch of inflation news that Federal Reserve officials will see before their policy meeting next week is in, and none of it is very good. In the … Read more

Why the Fed keeping rates higher for longer may not be such a bad thing

Why the Fed keeping rates higher for longer may not be such a bad thing

US Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell arrives to testify at a House Financial Services Committee hearing on the “Federal Reserve’s Semi-Annual Monetary Policy Report,” on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, March 6, 2024.  Mandel Ngan | Afp | Getty Images With the economy humming along and the stock market, despite some recent twists and … Read more

Big change in global growth is bullish for commodities: VanEck CEO

Big change in global growth is bullish for commodities: VanEck CEO

Investors should consider commodities due to a “big change” involving international expansion, according to VanEck CEO Jan van Eck. “The world economy started growing again,” van Eck told CNBC’s “ETF Edge” this week. He singles out China, the world’s second-largest economy behind the U.S., as a key driver in the expansion. “China which has been … Read more

Wall Street pushes out rate-cut expectations, sees risk of no action until 2025

Wall Street pushes out rate-cut expectations, sees risk of no action until 2025

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaks during a House Financial Services Committee hearing on the “Federal Reserve’s Semi-Annual Monetary Policy Report” on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., March 6, 2024.  Bonnie Cash | Reuters If there was any doubt before, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has pretty much cemented the likelihood that there won’t be … Read more

Regional bank failures may be ahead, Former FDIC head Bair warns

Regional bank failures may be ahead, Former FDIC head Bair warns

Regional bank earnings may expose critical weaknesses, according to Sheila Bair, former chair of the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Their quarterly numbers begin hitting Wall Street this week. “I’m worried about a handful of them,” Bair told CNBC’s “Fast Money” on Tuesday. “I think some of them are still overly reliant on industry deposits, … Read more

Powell says there has been a ‘lack of progress’ this year on inflation

Powell says there has been a ‘lack of progress’ this year on inflation

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the U.S. economy, while otherwise strong, has not seen inflation come back to the central bank’s goal. Speaking to a policy forum focused on U.S.-Canada economic relations, Powell said that while inflation continues to make its way lower, the current state of policy should remain intact. “More recent data … Read more

Watch Fed Chair Powell speak live during a policy forum in Washington

Watch Fed Chair Powell speak live during a policy forum in Washington

[The stream is slated to start at 1:15 p.m. ET. Please refresh the page if you do not see a player above at that time.] Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaks Wednesday to the Wilson Center’s Washington Forum on the Canadian Economy, in what will likely be his last policy speech before the next central … Read more