Bank of America: The Federal Reserve is expected to cut interest rates by 75 basis points in the fourth quarter and another 125 basis points in 2025

The Federal Reserve announced an ultra-standard 50 basis point rate cut early Thursday morning, which Powell said was intended to demonstrate policymakers' commitment to maintaining low unemployment after inflation eases. After the Fed's sharp rate cut, Bank of America was the only major brokerage to raise its forecast for the Fed's rate cuts for the rest of 2024. The Wall Street brokerage said it expects the Fed to cut interest rates by 75 basis points in the fourth quarter, after predicting that the Fed would cut interest rates by 25 basis points at its November and December meetings. And according to Fed policymakers' own forecasts, the federal funds rate will fall another 50 basis points by the end of 2024. Bank of America economists said that after the larger rate cut, "we are skeptical whether the Fed wants to deliver a hawkish surprise." The brokerage expects the Fed to cut interest rates by another 125 basis points in 2025, bringing the federal funds target rate from the current 4.75%-5.00% range to a terminal level of 2.75%-3.00%. (Jinshi)