Fed Fireball! Fed Swaps Lean Toward Back-to-Back Three-Quarter-Point Hikes After Red-hot September Inflation Report (75 Basis Point Hike For Next 2 FOMC Meetings)

Fed Fireball!

* Fed Swaps Lean Toward Back-to-Back Three-Quarter-Point Hikes
* Hotter-than-expected September inflation data spark shift

(Bloomberg) — The market for wagers on the Federal Reserve’s policy rate is leaning toward pricing back-to-back 75 basis point rate hikes in the next two central bank meetings after consumer prices rose more than forecast in September.

The rate on the November overnight index swap contract rose to 3.86%, more than 75 basis points above the current effective fed funds rate, while the one referring to December climbed to 4.50%. A total of 142 basis points of rate hikes are now priced in for the next two policy meetings, just short of consecutive three-quarter-point hikes.

Prior to the inflation data, OIS markets were leaning toward the central bank cooling the pace of tightening to a 50 basis point move in December. At Wednesday’s close, swaps priced in around 130 basis points of hikes over the remaining of the year, which is equivalent to 55 basis points for December.

The market also priced in a higher eventual peak for the policy rate, with the March 2023 contract touching 4.864%.

The CPI data was “clearly a shock for the markets and the markets are off because of it,” Seth Carpenter, chief global economist at Morgan Stanley said on Bloomberg television. “There is persistence, particularly in the services side of inflation.”

Excluding food and energy, the Consumer Price Index increased 6.6% from a year ago, the highest level since 1982, Labor Department data showed Thursday. From a month earlier, the core CPI climbed 0.6% for a second straight month.

The Fed has raised its policy rate five times since March, most recently to a range of 3%-3.25% in September, after dropping the lower bound to 0% two years earlier at the onset of the pandemic.

The Fed Funds Futures data is pointing further Fed rate hikes with a turnaround in March 2023.

And with that awful inflation report and the likely Fed counterattack, the two year US Treasury yield has risen to 4.4361%, the highest since The Great Recession and banking crisis.

Fed Fireball! Comin’ at ya!!

Biden and Powell should appear on Saturday Night Live as the joint Debbie Downer. Or Democrat Downer.

Movin’ On Up To The Dark Side! US Core Inflation Rises To Highest Level (6.6% YoY) Since 1982, Bond Volatility Now Highest Since Covid Lockdown (REAL Weekly Wage Growth Declines To -3.8% YoY)

The US is movin’ on up, to the dark side, while DC elites live in deluxe apartments in the sky. The US is movin’ on up to the dark side, we finally got a piece of the Banana Republic pie. … And its tastes horrible!

Today, the BLS released its inflation data. And it was terrible.

To begin with, headline inflation remains high at 8.2% YoY while CORE inflation (headline less food and energy) rose to 6.6% YoY.

Meanwhile, REAL average weekly earnings growth YoY further declined to -3.8% YoY.

On the bond front, the Bank of America ICE bond volatility index rose to Great Recession/banking crisis levels (also achieved during the Covid government shutdowns).

But back to the low-ball BLS inflation data. The biggest gain in price is … fuel oil at 33.1% YoY. Food at home rose 13.0% while gasoline rose 18.2%. Rent, according to the BLS, rose 6.6%.

Biden has probably been told by Ron Klain and Susan Rice that this is a good report.

The Fed’s BIG Green Bag! MSCI Global Technology Index Has Worst Month since October 2008 As Fed Withdraws Stimulus (NASDAQ, PayPal, ARKK All Tumbling)

I feel like I am living in the horror movie “Saw”. The Federal Reserve is tightening their BIG green bag of money to fight inflation … caused by Biden’s energy policies and massive Federal government spending.

(Bloomberg) Stocks fell, pressured by rising Treasury yields and signs that company earnings were set to disappoint. A gauge of the dollar climbed to the highest this month.

European shares declined for a fifth straight session as bond yields jumped amid concerns of persistently high inflation as well as the impact of hawkish central bank policies on global growth. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dropped 0.6%, with futures on the S&P 500 down by about the same magnitude, pointing to another risk-off day on Wall Street.

The mood is fragile ahead of Thursday’s US inflation data, with the case for another 75 basis-point rate hike likely to be strong if the reading comes in higher than than forecast. Fed officials until now show little sign they are in a mood to pause the rate-hiking cycle despite the potential hit to economic growth.

As The Fed tightens, the MSCI Global Technology index had the worst month since October 2008.

And the NASDAQ Composite index continues to fall with Fed removal of money. Hold on to your lugnuts! Because The Fed hasn’t stopped tightening.

Both ARKK and PayPal have gotten clipped by The Fed too.

The Perils Of Fed Tightening In One Chart (Or Sweet Home DC!) Treasury Yield Curve Remains In Reversion And Stock Market Declining As Fed Reduces Money Supply Growth

Sweet home DC! At least for the ruling elites. For the rest of us mortals, Bidenflation is crushing our finances.

To combat Bidenflation, The Fed has signaled that they will continue to raise interest rates. But at what cost?

(Bloomberg) — The world’s leading central banks are finally pushing their interest rates into restrictive territory, causing fears of overkill in financial markets and stoking chatter that policymakers may need to pivot at some point.

And with the withdrawal of monetary stimulus comes the slowdown of US M2 Money growth (green line). And with that slowdown, we see a declining stock market and an inverted US Treasury yield curve.

Of course, Biden could reverse his green energy agenda and allow for oil and natural gas exploration … again. Or begin building nuclear power plants again. But nooooo.

Another peril is rising mortgage rates.

Here is the S&P 500 against global liquidity.

Speaking of Freddie King, here is Joe Biden’s favorite song: hideaway.

Everybody Panic! Bloomberg’s Market Pulse Gauge Signals PANIC As The Market Pulse Index Collapses To Great Recession Lows

Everbody panic!

Bloomberg’s market pulse gauge is signalling panic.

The Bloomberg market pulse index quantifies sentiment using 6 factors — price breadth, pairwise correlation, low vol performance, defensive vs. cyclical sector performance, high vs. low leverage performance and high yield spreads.

It’s currently as panicked as in 2008!

JOLT! US Job Openings Plunge To Covid-Lockdown Levels (Will The Fed Notice??)

Ain’t this a kick in the head!

US job openings in August plunged to the grim days of the Covid lockdown. According to the JOLTs numbers, US job openings fell by -1,117.

But will The Fed notice? Or continue their inflation fight??

America! US 30yr Mortgage Rates Declines To 6.85% As US Home Prices Retreat From Highs (Will The Fed Pivot To Increase M2 Money Again?)

I was confused when President Biden claimed ‘I was sort of raised in the Puerto Rican community’ in Delaware.” Here are Joe and Jill Biden singing “America.” Apparently, Biden was in the Sharks gang and Trump’s MAGA supporters are the Jets.

On the real estate side, Bankrate’s 30-year mortgage rate dropped to 6.85% as the 10-year US Treasury yield drops.

On the home price front, according to the Black Knight Home Price Index (HPI), median home prices fell 0.98% in August, only marginally better than July’s upwardly revised 1.05% monthly decline July. August 2022 marked the largest single-month price declines seen since January 2009 and rank among the eight largest on record. The monthly rate of home price decline is now rivaling that seen during the Great Recession – the question is how long it will continue to do so, and how far off peaks prices will fall.

Now, will The Fed pivot to correct the plunging M2 Money growth?

Here is Joe Biden’s memory of a Maga rumble from Wilmington Delaware. I assume Trump is Riff and Biden is Bernado. But where is Corn Pop??

Great Reset?? US Treasury 10yr Yield Tanks -20 Basis Points (UK 10yr Tanks -24.1 BPS)

As I frequently told my investment and fixed-income securities students at Chicago, Ohio State and George Mason University, any 10 basis point change in the US Treasury 10-year yield is significant.

But how about today’s 20 basis point decline in the US Treasury 10-year yield?

The UK’s 10-year yield is down even more at -24.1 basis points. Germany is down -18 bps and France is down -10.3 bps.

Speaking of credit default swaps, Credit Suisse is back to financial crisis levels while UBS and Deutsche Bank are not … yet.

And gold jumped $28.5 dollars today as POP goes the yield.

With all the turbulence in markets thanks to the war in Ukraine and Biden’s green energy mandates and spending (not to mention Statists like Klaus Schwab screaming about a Great Reset), I was reminiscing about more simple times.