Yellen outlines international disappointment:
- Japan contraction was somewhat of a surprise
- Several emerging markets hurt by oil price drop
- Canada, Mexico feeling impact of lower oil on growth
- Chinese growth has been slowing as anticipated
- Indicators signal slightly weaker Eurozone growth
- Weak international growth has affected our outlook
More:
- Every meeting is a live meeting
- April remains a live meeting
- We've seen a marked decline in drilling activity
Balance of risks
- Some participants saw the risks as balanced, some participants saw them as tilted to the downside.
That's another dovish comment, it means that the Fed is somewhere between neutral and dovish, not neutral and hawkish as the market believed. It means the chances of a June hike are definitely lower than 50%.
- One doesn't see any convincing evidence of wage growth but I would expect it to move up
- Households have benefitted from lower oil prices
