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21 Mar 2013
Forex Flash: FOMC statement showed little change - BTMU
FXstreet.com (Barcelona) - Lee Hardman, FX Strategist at the Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ notes that the FOMC statement overnight was little changed from the January meeting although the Committee noted that the economy appears to be returning to “moderate growth following a pause late last year”.
He writes, “The FOMC expects only a modest negative impact upon growth this year from the sequester expecting growth of 2.55% (mid point). Chairman Bernanke stated that the labour market has made quite some progress but the FOMC wants to make sure such improvement is durable before altering the pace of QE which looks more likely in the second half of 2013. The Fed’s unemployment rate mid-point projections for 2013 and 2014 were revised down to 7.4% and 6.85% respectively to reflect the lower than expected starting point.”
He writes, “The FOMC expects only a modest negative impact upon growth this year from the sequester expecting growth of 2.55% (mid point). Chairman Bernanke stated that the labour market has made quite some progress but the FOMC wants to make sure such improvement is durable before altering the pace of QE which looks more likely in the second half of 2013. The Fed’s unemployment rate mid-point projections for 2013 and 2014 were revised down to 7.4% and 6.85% respectively to reflect the lower than expected starting point.”