Rate Hike Wednesday.
Welcome to the Know the Difference Minute for Wednesday, May 3rd.
Quarter point. No surprise. 10th time since March 2022. Fed funds rate at 5 to 5.25% for overnight bank lending but also consumer debt products like mortgages, auto loans and credit cards.
The announcement is one thing. Chairman Jerome Powell’s press conference is another.  
A few things we picked up:  
•	No decision yet on a ‘pause’. In fact, hikes are still possible depending on data. And as far as cuts, Powell said if forecasts are right, it will take some time before cuts are in the picture. 
•	Is it possible to cool the labor market without spiking unemployment? Powell says yes—but it would be QUOTE against history. 
•	The Fed feels a soft landing is not off the table—and the case of avoiding a recession is more likely than having one. 
I’m Dave Spano from Annex Wealth Management.  That is your Know the Difference Minute.