The Fed minutes from the 30 July meeting don't in general sound like the type of minutes that are setting us up for a rate cut. There is acknowledgement of a slowing tendency in the economy, but also identification of resilience. And there is a clear message that tariffs will result in higher inflation. The minutes also point to strong equity markets, steady to tighter credit spreads and decent availability of credit. Granted these minutes come after the infamous July employment report; the FOMC was looking at more robust employment numbers than we have now, as revised. Still, when Chair Powell speaks on Friday, he's ... (full story)