Source: Cointelegraph Original: "{title}"
The U.S. Federal Reserve will hold seven interest rate meetings this year, with the results of the second meeting of the year to be announced this Wednesday (March 19). According to expectations in the fixed income market, the Fed is likely to cut rates only two to three times this year, with the timing of the cuts concentrated in the second half, most likely starting in June. Previously, there was no adjustment to the interest rate during the January meeting.
Currently, the market has almost determined that the Fed will maintain the interest rate level during the meetings held on Tuesday and Wednesday. The CME Group's FedWatch tool shows that market traders believe there is a 99% probability that the Fed will keep the key rate at 4.25% to 4.5% in March, the same level as in January.
Federal Reserve officials, including Chairman Jerome Powell, have hinted in recent speeches that they are taking a wait-and-see approach to interest rates due to many unresolved economic policies. One major reason is that the Fed wants to clarify which countries the tariffs threatened by Trump will specifically target before making decisions. At the same time, the Fed also wants to observe whether these tariffs will drive inflation up, hinder economic growth, or both.
Andrzej Skiba, head of the U.S. fixed income department at RBC Global Asset Management, stated, "This may just be the beginning, and tariffs on Europe and other countries will follow in the coming weeks. This will lead to inflation, and in such an environment, the Fed is unlikely to cut rates."
As "uncertainty" becomes the current theme, the Fed may mention future action directions less frequently in official statements or press releases.
Matthew Luzzetti, chief U.S. economist at Deutsche Bank, wrote in a commentary, "We expect the Fed to keep rates stable for the second consecutive meeting, and given the increased uncertainty, it will provide limited guidance on the future policy path."
Historically, the Fed's interest rate decisions have been a double-edged sword for the crypto market. Rising interest rates often make investors more risk-averse, leading to a decline in the prices of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. On the other hand, a lower interest rate environment can create a more attractive setting for crypto investments. After all, who doesn't want to spend and invest when borrowing costs decrease?
In addition to the Fed, central banks in Japan, the UK, and others will hold monetary policy meetings, with several central banks in Switzerland, Sweden, Brazil, and others also set to announce interest rate decisions.
Among them, the Bank of Japan will announce its March interest rate decision this Wednesday, followed by a monetary policy press conference by Governor Kazuo Ueda. Economists generally expect the Bank of Japan to maintain the benchmark interest rate in March, with the next rate hike likely to occur in the third quarter.
The Bank of England will announce its interest rate decision on Thursday. In February, the Bank of England cut rates by 25 basis points, and currently, most economists expect the Bank of England to remain on hold at this meeting.
Emerging market central banks are expected to keep interest rates unchanged, with policy space constrained by currency depreciation and sticky inflation.
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