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The taper has begun… but the uber-dovish rate guidance is winning for now. We are sure there will be tears as reporters’ emotions spill over at the loss of Main Street’s all-knowing oracular savior. Once again, for the benefit of those not paying attention, “QE is for Main Street”, “The Fed does not target equity market levels”, “Tapering is not tightening”, and “Forward guidance is effective.” The king is dead, long live the queen…

 

While you prepare for that.. we wonder what these two are chatting about?

 

It would seem he has a lot of ‘splaining to do…

 

Live streaming video by Ustream

via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/PNVDCu83tXM/story01.htm Tyler Durden

The taper has begun… but the uber-dovish rate guidance is winning for now. We are sure there will be tears as reporters’ emotions spill over at the loss of Main Street’s all-knowing oracular savior. Once again, for the benefit of those not paying attention, “QE is for Main Street”, “The Fed does not target equity market levels”, “Tapering is not tightening”, and “Forward guidance is effective.” The king is dead, long live the queen…

 

While you prepare for that.. we wonder what these two are chatting about?

 

It would seem he has a lot of ‘splaining to do…

 

Live streaming video by Ustream

via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/PNVDCu83tXM/story01.htm Tyler Durden

The "swap" of $10 billion of asset purchases for a lower employment threshold and lower-rates-for-longer forward guidance knne-jerked stocks dramatically higher (for now). But while that was occurring, the Wall Street Journal's Hon Hilsenrath was busy preparing 712 words in a record-setting 3-minutes to explain how the Fed remains data-dependent… and will remain dovish for longer than previously thought.

 

Via WSJ,

The Federal Reserve said it would reduce its signature bond-buying program to $75 billion per month, taking a step away from a policy meant to recharge economic growth, and said that it will continue in "further measured steps at future meetings" if the economy stays on course.

After months of intense discussion at the Fed and in financial markets, the Fed's policy-making committee announced Wednesday it would trim its purchases of long-term Treasury bonds to $40 billion per month, a reduction of $5 billion, and cut its purchases of mortgage-backed securities to $35 billion per month, a reduction of $5 billion.

"In light of the cumulative progress toward maximum employment and the improvement in the outlook for labor market conditions, the Committee decided to modestly reduce the pace of its asset purchases," the Fed said in its formal policy statement.

The Fed also sought to enhance its commitment to keep short-term interest rates low for a long time after the bond-buying program ends. Fed officials inserted new language in the policy statement that stressed they will be in no rush to raise rates once unemployment reaches the 6.5% threshold the central bank has set out as the point at which they would start considering raising rates, as long as inflation remains in check.

The Fed said that "it likely will be appropriate to maintain the current target range for the federal funds rate well past the time" that the jobless rate dips below the 6.5% threshold, "especially if projected inflation continues to run below the Committee's 2 percent longer-run goal."

Short-term rates have been pinned near zero since late 2008. Most Fed officials expect to keep interest rates low well into the future. In their latest economic projections, also out Wednesday, 12 of 17 Fed officials said they expected the central bank's benchmark interest rate, which is called the fed funds rate, to be at or below 1% by the end of 2015. Ten of 17 officials expected the rate to be at or below 2% by the end of 2016.

The Fed acknowledged concerns that inflation continues to run stubbornly below the central bank's 2% target, saying that it is "monitoring inflation developments carefully for evidence that inflation will move back toward its objective over the medium term." The Fed's preferred inflation gauge, the price index for personal consumption expenditures, increased just 0.7% in October from a year prior, according to a Commerce Department data release earlier this month.

Officials by and large stuck with their economic forecasts for 2014, making only slight adjustments to projections of growth, unemployment and inflation that they made in September. In the statement, officials said that risks to the economy and jobs market have become "more nearly balanced."

Read more here…

 

via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/Mlmkdc6wRB4/story01.htm Tyler Durden

The "swap" of $10 billion of asset purchases for a lower employment threshold and lower-rates-for-longer forward guidance knne-jerked stocks dramatically higher (for now). But while that was occurring, the Wall Street Journal's Hon Hilsenrath was busy preparing 712 words in a record-setting 3-minutes to explain how the Fed remains data-dependent… and will remain dovish for longer than previously thought.

 

Via WSJ,

The Federal Reserve said it would reduce its signature bond-buying program to $75 billion per month, taking a step away from a policy meant to recharge economic growth, and said that it will continue in "further measured steps at future meetings" if the economy stays on course.

After months of intense discussion at the Fed and in financial markets, the Fed's policy-making committee announced Wednesday it would trim its purchases of long-term Treasury bonds to $40 billion per month, a reduction of $5 billion, and cut its purchases of mortgage-backed securities to $35 billion per month, a reduction of $5 billion.

"In light of the cumulative progress toward maximum employment and the improvement in the outlook for labor market conditions, the Committee decided to modestly reduce the pace of its asset purchases," the Fed said in its formal policy statement.

The Fed also sought to enhance its commitment to keep short-term interest rates low for a long time after the bond-buying program ends. Fed officials inserted new language in the policy statement that stressed they will be in no rush to raise rates once unemployment reaches the 6.5% threshold the central bank has set out as the point at which they would start considering raising rates, as long as inflation remains in check.

The Fed said that "it likely will be appropriate to maintain the current target range for the federal funds rate well past the time" that the jobless rate dips below the 6.5% threshold, "especially if projected inflation continues to run below the Committee's 2 percent longer-run goal."

Short-term rates have been pinned near zero since late 2008. Most Fed officials expect to keep interest rates low well into the future. In their latest economic projections, also out Wednesday, 12 of 17 Fed officials said they expected the central bank's benchmark interest rate, which is called the fed funds rate, to be at or below 1% by the end of 2015. Ten of 17 officials expected the rate to be at or below 2% by the end of 2016.

The Fed acknowledged concerns that inflation continues to run stubbornly below the central bank's 2% target, saying that it is "monitoring inflation developments carefully for evidence that inflation will move back toward its objective over the medium term." The Fed's preferred inflation gauge, the price index for personal consumption expenditures, increased just 0.7% in October from a year prior, according to a Commerce Department data release earlier this month.

Officials by and large stuck with their economic forecasts for 2014, making only slight adjustments to projections of growth, unemployment and inflation that they made in September. In the statement, officials said that risks to the economy and jobs market have become "more nearly balanced."

Read more here…

 

via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/Mlmkdc6wRB4/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Despite the world of mainstream media pundits proclaiming the US is recovering nicely and that a taper is priced in (and the warning that the 5Y auction gave this morning that it's not), markets are already reacting violently to the Fed's decision to announce a small 'taper' (and more dovish forward guidance)…

• *FED TAPERS QE TO $75 BLN MONTHLY PACE, STARTING IN JANUARY
• *FED SAYS `FURTHER MEASURED STEPS' POSSIBLE ON TAPERING
• *FED: EXCEPTIONALLY LOW RATES UNTIL JOBLESS FALLS WELL PAST 6.5%

We now leave it to Ben and his final press conference to explain his decision… and, of course, make sure everyone remembers "QE is for Main Street", 'tapering is not tightening' (despite Jim Bullard telling us it is), and just how effective 'forward guidance' is.

Pre-FOMC: S&P Fut 1771 (spiked pre-FOMC), 5Y 1.55%, 10Y 2.875%, VIX 16.5%, Gold $1236 (which was spiking pre-FOMC), EUR 1.376

Full red-line to follow…

 

As a reminder, here are the 4 reasons why the Fed was cornered into tapering… as we have noted numerous times before; the "taper" is all about economic cover for a forced move the Fed has to make:

1. Deficits are shrinking and the Fed has less and less room for its buying

 

2. Under the surface, various non-mainstream technicalities are breaking in the markets due to the size of the Fed's position (repo markets, bond specialness, and fail-to-delivers among them).

 

3. Sentiment is critical; if the public starts to believe (as Kyle Bass warned) that the central bank is monetizing the government's debt (which it clearly is), then the game accelerates away from them very quickly – and we suspect they fear we are close to that tipping point

 

4. The rest of the world is not happy. As Canada just noted, the US monetary policy will be discussed at the G-20

Simply put, they were cornered and needed to Taper sooner rather later…

 

and as Jim Bullard previously noted,

 

“Financial market reaction to the June and September FOMC meetings provides sharp evidence that changes in the expected pace of asset purchases have conventional monetary policy effects.

 

Using the pace of purchases as the policy instrument is just as effective as normal monetary policy actions would be in normal times”

 

Or – in other words:

Tapering Is Tightening

 

And as BAML noted previously, forward guidance is ineffective as,

…policy makers are finding it harder to convince markets that central bankers have more insight into the future course of the economy and policy than they actually do. Meanwhile, markets are learning that it can be painful to rely too heavily on forward guidance when the risk/reward of being long fixed income is asymmetrical when close to the zero lower bound.

Full Statement redline below:

 

 

via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/cPjabKT6hnM/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Despite the world of mainstream media pundits proclaiming the US is recovering nicely and that a taper is priced in (and the warning that the 5Y auction gave this morning that it's not), markets are already reacting violently to the Fed's decision to announce a small 'taper' (and more dovish forward guidance)…

• *FED TAPERS QE TO $75 BLN MONTHLY PACE, STARTING IN JANUARY
• *FED SAYS `FURTHER MEASURED STEPS' POSSIBLE ON TAPERING
• *FED: EXCEPTIONALLY LOW RATES UNTIL JOBLESS FALLS WELL PAST 6.5%

We now leave it to Ben and his final press conference to explain his decision… and, of course, make sure everyone remembers "QE is for Main Street", 'tapering is not tightening' (despite Jim Bullard telling us it is), and just how effective 'forward guidance' is.

Pre-FOMC: S&P Fut 1771 (spiked pre-FOMC), 5Y 1.55%, 10Y 2.875%, VIX 16.5%, Gold $1236 (which was spiking pre-FOMC), EUR 1.376

Full red-line to follow…

 

As a reminder, here are the 4 reasons why the Fed was cornered into tapering… as we have noted numerous times before; the "taper" is all about economic cover for a forced move the Fed has to make:

1. Deficits are shrinking and the Fed has less and less room for its buying

 

2. Under the surface, various non-mainstream technicalities are breaking in the markets due to the size of the Fed's position (repo markets, bond specialness, and fail-to-delivers among them).

 

3. Sentiment is critical; if the public starts to believe (as Kyle Bass warned) that the central bank is monetizing the government's debt (which it clearly is), then the game accelerates away from them very quickly – and we suspect they fear we are close to that tipping point

 

4. The rest of the world is not happy. As Canada just noted, the US monetary policy will be discussed at the G-20

Simply put, they were cornered and needed to Taper sooner rather later…

 

and as Jim Bullard previously noted,

 

“Financial market reaction to the June and September FOMC meetings provides sharp evidence that changes in the expected pace of asset purchases have conventional monetary policy effects.

 

Using the pace of purchases as the policy instrument is just as effective as normal monetary policy actions would be in normal times”

 

Or – in other words:

Tapering Is Tightening

 

And as BAML noted previously, forward guidance is ineffective as,

…policy makers are finding it harder to convince markets that central bankers have more insight into the future course of the economy and policy than they actually do. Meanwhile, markets are learning that it can be painful to rely too heavily on forward guidance when the risk/reward of being long fixed income is asymmetrical when close to the zero lower bound.

Full Statement redline below:

 

 

via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/cPjabKT6hnM/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Of the 68 “economists” (which incidentally none of which are “qualified”) that Bloomberg surveyed, 24 believe a taper is coming with the majority expecting a $10 billion cut in the asset-purchase program.

 

 

(h/t Not_Jim_Cramer)

via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/ZG4M-S8X8VI/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Of the 68 “economists” (which incidentally none of which are “qualified”) that Bloomberg surveyed, 24 believe a taper is coming with the majority expecting a $10 billion cut in the asset-purchase program.

 

 

(h/t Not_Jim_Cramer)

via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/ZG4M-S8X8VI/story01.htm Tyler Durden