• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'

3

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'

3

Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Finance

Could the Fed convene a surprise meeting to hike interest rates? The markets are beginning to price it in, and it’s walloping stocks

By
Bernhard Warner
Bernhard Warner
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Bernhard Warner
Bernhard Warner
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 11, 2022, 5:23 AM ET

The hottest inflation in 40 years is scrambling markets logic—and risk assets are paying the price.

Mere hours after yesterday’s CPI—a.k.a., the consumer price index, or the measure of how much more Americans are paying for everything from toilet paper to jeans to a 2016 Mazda CX-5—showed a bigger-than-expected inflation print, some big names started to openly discuss a break-the-glass solution to cool down the economy and stifle price rises.

Rates hawk James Bullard, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, got the ball rolling yesterday. He told Bloomberg, “I’d like to see 100 basis points in the bag by July 1,” a statement that helped knock more than 500 points off the blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average on Thursday, and sank the Nasdaq by more than 2%. Futures on the tech-heavy index are trading lower again on Friday, premarket, and Europe and Asia are awash in red this morning.

Were the Fed to raise the prime lending rate by one full percentage point by midsummer, as Bullard would like, the central bank would need to make some aggressive moves between now and then. One scenario getting further attention this morning: scheduling an inter-meeting rate-setting session of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to cool off consumer prices and put the squash on wage gains.

As Deutsche Bank points out this morning, the Fed hasn’t gathered its troop of central bankers to raise rates at a special inter-meeting session since 1994. The investment bank sees such a prospect as “a small possibility,” but others are not so sure it’s all that remote.

Tim Duy, an economist and Fed watcher at SGH Macro Advisors, is so worried that the Fed is behind the curve that, he says, a surprise Fed meeting should be in the cards as soon as today or Monday. “I know, this is crazy aggressive,” he rationalizes in a note, picked up by the Wall Street Journal.

“I would not be surprised by an intermeeting move either tomorrow Friday or by Monday. I know, this is crazy aggressive. We have no inside information. It is just getting to the point where the distance between the Fed’s current position and reality is too wide to ignore”-@TimDuy

— Victoria Guida (@vtg2) February 10, 2022

In an overnight note to investors, Goldman Sachs chief economist Jan Hatzius said he also sees “a more aggressive and meaningful response” coming from the Fed, but he thinks the bazooka they plan to fire will be a 50 basis point rate hike at the March FOMC meeting. That, he said, “would be more likely than an inter-meeting hike.”

In any case, a decisive monetary policy move is needed, he argues, to derail the “very firm” inflation trend. As such, Goldman is now forecasting seven rate hikes this year—up from its prediction of five.

A more hawkish Fed is sending ripple effects through the markets. That the central bank would begin raising rates as soon as March was no surprise to investors. But the prospect of the Fed playing catch-up to bring inflation under control was seen as remote by equities bulls as recently as a few days ago.

Typically, unprofitable growth stocks underperform when the Fed begins tightening rates. Small-caps, too, tend to struggle—well, at least those with “weaker balance sheets, lower profit margins, and less market power,” Goldman’s David J. Kostin warned investors late last week.

On cue, investors are turning their attention to safe-haven assets. The dollar is up strongly, and long-rated Treasuries are rebounding. Bitcoin, along with other cryptocurrencies, is faltering in morning trading in Europe.

Check out this Fortune must-read: “Why Wall Street thinks the metaverse will be worth trillions”

About the Author
By Bernhard Warner
LinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

Beyond the diploma: Skills that actually get graduates hired
Future of WorkWorkplace Innovation Summit
Beyond the diploma: Skills that actually get graduates hired
By Ashley LutzMay 22, 2026
7 hours ago
Sam Altman standing in a lift.
AIOpenAI
The big questions looming over OpenAI’s trillion-dollar IPO
By Beatrice NolanMay 22, 2026
7 hours ago
Walmart shoppers are filling their gas tanks with less than 10 gallons for the first time since 2022, and its CFO calls it ‘an indication of stress’
EconomyRetail
Walmart shoppers are filling their gas tanks with less than 10 gallons for the first time since 2022, and its CFO calls it ‘an indication of stress’
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezMay 22, 2026
7 hours ago
Musk may already be a trillionaire while these SpaceX employees and investors will hit multibillion-dollar jackpots after blockbuster IPO
Startups & VentureSpaceX
Musk may already be a trillionaire while these SpaceX employees and investors will hit multibillion-dollar jackpots after blockbuster IPO
By Jason MaMay 22, 2026
8 hours ago
ta
EconomySocial Media
They created AI nudes that got millions of views online. Now they’re being charged with crimes
By Jake Offenhartz and The Associated PressMay 22, 2026
9 hours ago
Best private student loans in May 2026
Personal FinanceLoans
Best private student loans in May 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 22, 2026
9 hours ago

Most Popular

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
Success
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
By Preston ForeMay 21, 2026
1 day ago
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
Success
Despite a $500 million net worth, Shaq just finished his fourth degree. He warns graduates: 'Your character will take you further than your resume'
By Preston ForeMay 20, 2026
2 days ago
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Workplace Culture
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
3 days ago
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can't explain why they pay what they pay
Workplace Culture
Pay transparency is exposing a bigger problem: Most companies can't explain why they pay what they pay
By Sydney LakeMay 20, 2026
2 days ago
McKinsey partner says up to 50% of work hours could be transformed within the next 5 years
AI
McKinsey partner says up to 50% of work hours could be transformed within the next 5 years
By Emma BurleighMay 21, 2026
1 day ago
A 'proudly autistic' workplace expert says putting neurodivergent employees in a typical office is like dropping a polar bear in Austin, Texas
Conferences
A 'proudly autistic' workplace expert says putting neurodivergent employees in a typical office is like dropping a polar bear in Austin, Texas
By Tristan BoveMay 20, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.