REMINISCENCES OF A SOES BANDIT

In the FOMC announcement, the Fed said that household spending has seen signs of stabilization, but will continue to be pressured by job losses, decreased housing wealth and tight credit conditions. The committee expects continued weak economic activity, but feels its policy actions combined with fiscal stimulus should help contribute to a gradual resumption of sustained economic growth.



The poor economic environment in the U.S. and overseas led the FOMC to believe that inflation will remain subdued, with a risk of persistent inflation at levels below those that promote economic and price stability.

The vote to leave the fed funds rate and quantitative measures unchanged was unanimous. While the statement was more positive than the March statement, it didn't provide many surprises.



Of note, Treasuries saw a decline following the statement, with the 10-year down 24 ticks. Stocks are largely unchanged.DJ30 +196.01 NASDAQ +43.56 SP500 +21.74 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 2055/1.56 bln/575 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2563/775 mln/442