SUMMARY OF FED CHAIRMAN POWELL'S STATEMENT SEPTEMBER 2024:

1. The Fed says the economy "remains strong overall"

2. The Fed has "increasing confidence" that the strength of the labor market can be sustained

3. Consumer spending remains "resilient"

4. Inflation has declined but remains "above the 2% target"

5. The labor market deserves attention - although it is now less tight than before the pandemic

6. The Fed must still react to the data. If appropriate, the Fed can accelerate or slow the pace of rate cuts, or even choose to pause rate cuts.

The Fed's balance now is generally between inflation and unemployment (employment). And perhaps the FED was leaning towards supporting the labor market, so it chose to cut 0.5% today

After this decision, a wave of opposition to the FED from many economic experts is emerging: Why is it necessary to cut interest rates to 0.5% if the economy is still "strong"?