CNBC Daily Open: The Fed wants inflation at 2%. But the economy might be fine with higher inflation
Publishing timestamp: 2023-02-21 01:23:50
Summary
HSBC, Europe's largest bank, reported a 108% jump in fourth-quarter profit year-over-year, beating analysts' estimates. Markets in the US were closed on Monday for Presidents Day, but stock futures dropped overnight. The US Federal Reserve and many other central banks have been proclaiming their determination to bring inflation down to 2%, but some economists have criticized this arbitrary target. President Joe Biden visited Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, on Monday to reaffirm America's commitment to Ukraine and announced new weapon deliveries. The US economy could avoid recession this year or crash, and Goldman Sachs has suggested stocks that let investors "expect the best but insure against the worst." The 2% inflation target has been repeated so often by Fed officials and central bankers worldwide, but it was invented in New Zealand in the 1980s and may not be necessary for a healthy economy.
Sentiment: NEUTRAL
Tickers: HSBA-GB,
Keywords: war, markets, ukraine, world markets, new york, inflation, federal reserve system, new zealand, banks, japan, hsbc holdings plc, united states, central banking, interest rates, joe biden, volodymyr zelenskyy, business news, federal reserve bank,