Powell does whatever the popular narrative tells him to and he’s been that way since he took office. The idea that he’s fundamentally a hawk at his core is tota

Powell does whatever the popular narrative tells him to and he’s been that way since he took office. The idea that he’s fundamentally a hawk at his core is totally absurd. If that were the case he’d have enacted tougher policies a year earlier when many economists were saying he should and that there was absolutely no reason for the fed to be buying tens of billions in mortgages during a housing shortage with record low unemployment. Now because he’s lost credibility and everyone thinks he’s a joke he’s acting tough. But in reality he is totally reliant on cpi data. As soon as that comes in (nobody knows when many have been eager to call a top for several months and continually getting burned) the narrative will shift for the fed to slow down or cause a major recession and believe me they will. The sad reality is that this fed is not made of rigorous economists who have some read that nobody else does. They have absolutely no idea what they’re doing or what their policies will or won’t do down the road. So the best they can do is try and preserve market order by giving the appearance of having control and keeping stability. It’s like dominoes- cpi data moves rates which move the stock market. It’s all one trade.