Explainer: Charting the Fed's economic data flow
Business
Explainer: Charting the Fed's economic data flow
(Reuters) - The final month of 2023 featured a rush of data about the health of the U.S. economy and the state of price increases that a number of Federal Reserve officials saw as reassuring signs that their long fight against inflation was on track to end with a "soft landing."
The year began with widespread expectations among economists, and many Fed officials themselves, that a recession would unfold under the weight of aggressive central bank interest rate increases. It came to an end with many confident that outcome could be avoided.
Moreover, Fed officials in their final meeting of the year signaled that the rate-increase cycle wasn't merely over - a new cycle of rate reductions was likely in the cards for 2024.
The relatively benign run of figures that set the stage for that is, of course, now history, and just how soon officials can turn to that policy pivot rests on what the data in 2024 brings.
That rush begins in the first two weeks of the year with major readings of the job market, consumer spending and inflation due as the year kicks off.
