How many times will the Fed hike in 2017
The Fed meets eight times in 2017 with the first on Feb 2. With Fed members near-universally preaching patience and gradual hikes, the Fed funds futures market sees only a 12.4% chance of a hike. I'd say that's about 12.3 percentage points too high.
Looking out further in the year, there is lots of talk about three hikes from FOMC members but the market is only pricing in a 39.1% chance of 3 or more hikes.
An interesting question will be what happens to Janet Yellen. She said she intends to finish out her four-year term that runs until next February.
If he replaces her, she will retain her seat on the Federal Reserve board as a voter until 2024 but it's hard to imagine the 70-year-old will stick around.
