The Lombard Review

Blowout jobs, tighter Fed

Rule-implied rate above policy

Interior of The Warehouse in Paraparaumu, New Zealand
Interior of The Warehouse in Paraparaumu, New Zealand Photo: Panamitsu/Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Key dataStrong August payrolls

The August employment report arrived with an explosive, unequivocal display of macroeconomic resilience: non-farm payrolls surged far above all Wall Street expectations, delivering a blowout hiring print that obliterated any remaining arguments for central bank accommodation.

The Nasdaq MarketSite in Times Square, New York
The Nasdaq MarketSite in Times Square, New York Photo: NASA/Emma Howells/Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

The Taylor Rule Divergence

Quantitative monetary models—including standard Taylor Rule specifications and inertial policy-reaction functions—indicate that with headline inflation at 3.4 per cent and labor markets operating at full employment, the rule-implied federal funds rate sits well north of 4.50 per cent. The prevailing policy rate of 3.50–3.75 per cent represents an un-sustainable, overly accommodative monetary stance that actively fuels domestic demand overheating.

Aerial view of a new housing development
Aerial view of a new housing development Photo: Charles O'Rear/Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

The Inevitable Tightening Clamp

For Chairman Kevin Warsh and the Federal Open Market Committee, the blowout jobs report removes any lingering hesitation. The domestic economy does not require monetary support; it requires immediate policy discipline to prevent labor market overheating from entrenching inflation expectations. Blowout August jobs data seals the fate of monetary policy: with hiring roaring and rule-implied policy rates far above current levels, the Federal Reserve is locked into an unavoidable interest rate hike.

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