Fed: new stances from Bostic and especially Harker - Nomura

Analysts at Nomura explained that a number of FOMC participants delivered remarks this week on monetary policy and the outlook. 

Key Quotes:

"New York Fed President Dudley, expected to retire sometime after the spring, sounded a hawkish note on policy, calling for the continuation of monetary policy tightening. In particular, he expressed confidence that the relationship between labor market slack and inflation remains intact. Moreover, he highlighted the upside risk from an overheating economy when discussing his 2018 outlook. In contrast, St. Louis Fed President Bullard, Philadelphia Fed President Harker, and Atlanta Fed President Bostic sent dovish signals. That is not a change for Bullard. But it is new for Bostic and especially Harker.

For Bostic noted that his view of gradual monetary tightening “doesn't necessarily mean as many as three or four moves per year”, indicating that he may be starting to shift towards the FOMC’s dovish camp. Harker reiterated his view of two hikes in 2018 as an appropriate policy path, one less than the current FOMC forecast median. Similar to last week, many participants discussed or addressed questions on alternative monetary policy frameworks. However, we continue to view this as a longer-term issue or a preparation for the next recession."