speeches · July 19, 2018
Regional President Speech
James Bullard · President
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From the President
Assessing the Risk of Yield Curve Inversion: An
Update
July 20, 2018
Presentation (pdf) | Press Release | Photos
Video of Presentation | Audience Q&A (audio)
Transcript of Media Q&A (pdf)
In Glasgow, Ky., St. Louis Fed President James Bullard talked about the possibility that the
yield curve would invert, which he �rst discussed in a speech on Dec. 1, 2017. “Since then,
events have transpired that have �attened the yield curve further, and imminent yield curve
inversion in the U.S. has become a real possibility,” he said.
In particular, Bullard commented that there is “a material risk of yield curve inversion” over
the forecast horizon (about 2 ½ years) if the FOMC continues on its present course for
raising the fed funds rate, as suggested in the June 2018 Summary of Economic Projections.
Such an inversion—whereby short-term interest rates exceed long-term interest rates—is a
“naturally bearish signal for the economy,” he said. He noted that yield curve inversion is
best avoided in the near term by caution in raising the fed funds rate. “Given tame U.S.
in�ation expectations, it is unnecessary to push monetary policy normalization to such an
extent that the yield curve inverts,” he said.
Presentation:
Audience Q&A:
ST. LOUIS FED
00:00:00 / 00:11:42
Audience30
Q&A, Glasgow-Barren
County Chamber30
of Commerce Quarterly Breakfast, Glasg…
Photos:
On a two-day trip to Glasgow, Ky., Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard
visited with business and other civic leaders. Among his stops Thursday and Friday were at
two manufacturers, a health “pavilion” in what was once a Walmart and a technology center
due to open next month on the local high school’s campus. Bullard frequently visits
communities in the four zones that make up the St. Louis Fed’s District. Glasgow is in the
Louisville Zone.
One of the stops made by Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard (arms folded) on
Thursday was at SpanTech LLC, which develops and manufactures conveyor systems and chain components.
The company’s chief operating o�cer, Tiffany Somerville, and co-worker Roger Judd explain the
manufacturing process. Also participating on this tour (from the left) were Courtney Ingram, an intern at the
Fed’s Louisville Branch; Randy Schumaker, a member of the Branch’s board of directors; and Nikki Jackson, a
senior vice president of the St. Louis Fed and the regional executive of its Louisville Branch.
Download High Resolution Photo
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard addressed more than 200 people on Friday at a
breakfast sponsored by the Glasgow-Barren County Chamber of Commerce. His topic was the risk of a yield
curve inversion, when short-term interest rates surpass long-term rates. An inversion “is a naturally bearish
signal for the economy,” he said.
Download High Resolution Photo
Cite this document
APA
James Bullard (2018, July 19). Regional President Speech. Speeches, Federal Reserve. https://whenthefedspeaks.com/doc/regional_speeche_20180720_james_bullard
BibTeX
@misc{wtfs_regional_speeche_20180720_james_bullard,
author = {James Bullard},
title = {Regional President Speech},
year = {2018},
month = {Jul},
howpublished = {Speeches, Federal Reserve},
url = {https://whenthefedspeaks.com/doc/regional_speeche_20180720_james_bullard},
note = {Retrieved via When the Fed Speaks corpus}
}