*By Lauren Babbage*
A two-day meeting of the the Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee was to begin Tuesday, when central bank officials will consider a potential second rate hike this year.
There are a number of challenges the committee will face, in addition to an uptick in inflation. The economy may be near full employment, but wages haven't increased. The country's fiscal spending, according to the Congressional Budget Office, may increase the national debt as a percent of GDP to a higher level than Italy in five years.
One might expect to see the economy pullback, but that's not been the case.
"It's like 2 A.M., everyone has been partying all night, and the federal government comes out and goes, 'No no, we're going to keep going for a lot more hours' and now the Fed has to try to keep everyone healthy," said Lenore Hawkins, the chief macro strategist at Tematica Research. "That's like, alright, start doing the shots of espresso, but the Fed is trying to keep everyone from getting the jitters. This is not an easy thing for them to do."
Investors were spooked last week when the 10-year Treasury note hit 3 percent for a brief period, and Hawkins said that nervousness will continue.
The market is seeing a decrease in liquidity, which means an increase in volatility, she said. That is heightened by the increasing debt of the U.S. Treasury.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-fed-interest-rate-face-off).
Emily Peck, National Correspondent at Axios, explains why office vacancies hit 21% despite RTO pushes, highlighting a lasting shift in how Americans work.
Tobias Bauer, CEO & President of Rolling Stock at Siemens Mobility North America, shares insights on a $220M investment reshaping U.S. rail infrastructure.
Kory Kantenga from LinkedIn unpacks how the US added nearly 3x the expected jobs in March, and whether it can last as the Iran war reshapes the economy.
U.S. Air Force pilot Tyler Lucas beat 199 competitors on Beast Games Season 2 to win $5.1M. He joins us live to share how discipline and loyalty won the game.
Osier founder Cheree Ashley spent a decade building recovery programs & now she's channeling that mission into skincare with Selling Sunset's Sandra Vergara.
Genesis just committed to 22 new vehicles by 2030. The brand's COO joins us live to break down their luxury takeover, NY Auto Show reveals, and what's next.
