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New Year Brings New Voters to Fed’s Rate-Setting Committee
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Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester has been a hawkish voice and has been willing to dissent at policy meetings. PHOTO: LUCAS JACKSON/REUTERS
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Good morning, CFOs. Four new voters are joining the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate-setting committee in a year when the central bank is expected to start cutting rates after hiking them aggressively since early 2022.
The presidents of the Atlanta, Cleveland, Richmond and San Francisco Fed banks will get a formal say this year in what the Federal Open Market Committee decides to do with monetary policy. Other regional Fed presidents also participate in policy discussions by offering observations and regional insights, but don’t get to vote.
Policymakers have been encouraged that their campaign of rate raises has lowered inflation without derailing the economy, but they have a lot of uncertainties to weigh in the year ahead, including geopolitical tensions with disrupted Red Sea shipping and wars in Gaza and Ukraine. The Chinese economy has slowed, also posing a hazard.
In the U.S., inflation has trended down for months toward the Fed’s 2% target, with the latest consumer-price index at 3.4% on a year-over-year basis, while the labor market has cooled.
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Content from: DELOITTE
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How and Why to Prioritize Succession Planning
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Ongoing executive succession planning will likely become a greater priority for many organizations in light of recent trends. Consider actions to take for a comprehensive approach for the long term. Keep Reading ›
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Monday
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Earnings: Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Franklin Resources, Nucor
Tuesday
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Earnings: Alphabet, General Motors, Microsoft, Starbucks, United Parcel Service
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The Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.
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S&P CoreLogic releases its Case-Shiller National Home Price index for November.
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The Conference Board releases its Consumer Confidence Index for January.
Wednesday
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Earnings: Boeing, Nasdaq, Phillips 66, Qualcomm, Rockwell Automation
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The Federal Open Market Committee announces its monetary policy decision.
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ADP releases its National Employment Report for January.
Thursday
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Earnings: Amazon, Apple, Clorox, Meta Platforms, Shell
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The Institute for Supply Management releases its Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index for January.
Friday
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Earnings: Bristol Myers Squibb, Chevron, Cigna, Exxon Mobil
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The Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the jobs report for January.
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What Else Matters to CFOs Today
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Frost met last week with his leadership team ahead of Wednesday’s announcement of Treasury’s quarterly refunding plans. PHOTO: KENT NISHIMURA FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
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Josh Frost’s low-profile job is suddenly a Wall Street obsession. As the Treasury Department’s assistant secretary for financial markets, he sets the mix of U.S. government bonds sold to investors, a process guided by the department’s mantra to be “regular and predictable.”
So he found it odd last year when his phone started lighting up with texts from friends and former colleagues telling him that CNBC’s Jim Cramer had crowned him “the most important man in finance.”
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Property developer China Evergrande Group has been ordered to liquidate by a Hong Kong court, bringing an end to the yearslong saga of a company whose default rippled through the world’s second-largest economy.
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This bonus season is shaping up to be another underwhelming one for bankers on Wall Street as lackluster deal activity pushes down the closely watched annual payouts.
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Switzerland’s Holcim struck a deal to separate out its North America business, a big supplier of building materials that could be worth more than $30 billion.
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U.S. Treasury yields, which set a floor on the cost of debt such as mortgages and corporate bonds, have retreated from their multiyear highs. Businesses and individuals are finding it easier to borrow, and many are forging ahead.
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Retail property owners are shedding the discounts and other concessions they offered struggling tenants during the depths of the pandemic, the latest sign that competition for retail real estate is intensifying.
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“The notion of a recession has been completely obliterated from the mind and the positioning of most portfolio managers.”
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— David Rosenberg, president at Rosenberg Research & Associates
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Devon Energy, an Oklahoma City-based energy company, named John Sherrer as vice president of accounting and controller, effective March 8. Sherrer was most recently leader of the company's financial accounting group. He succeeds Jeremy Humphers, who is retiring as chief accounting officer.
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The Wall Street Journal's CFO Journal offers corporate leaders and professionals CFO analysis, advice and commentary to make informed decisions. We cover topics ranging from corporate tax accounting, regulation, capital markets, management and strategy. Follow us on X @WSJCFO. The WSJ CFO Journal Team is reporters Kristin Broughton, Mark Maurer and Jennifer Williams-Alvarez, and Bureau Chief Walden Siew. You can reach us by replying to any newsletter, or email Walden at walden.siew@wsj.com.
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