7/23/2019 CNBC Fed Survey, December 15, 2015 http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/cnbc-fed-survey-december-15-2015 1/27 CNBC Fed Survey – December 15, 2015 Page 1 of 27FED SURVEY December 15, 2015 These survey results represent the opinions of 42 of the nation’s top money managers, investment strategists, and professional economists. They responded to CNBC’s invitation to participate in our online survey. Their responses were collected on December 10-11, 2015. Participants were not required to answer every question. Results are also shown for identical questions in earlier surveys. This is not intended to be a scientific poll and its results should not be extrapolated beyond those who did accept our invitation. 1.Will the Federal Reserve raise the federal funds rate at its December meeting? 95% 5% 0% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% Yes No Don't know/unsure
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These survey results represent the opinions of 42 of the nation’s top money managers,investment strategists, and professional economists.
They responded to CNBC’s invitation to participate in our online survey. Their responses werecollected on December 10-11, 2015. Participants were not required to answer every question.
Results are also shown for identical questions in earlier surveys.
This is not intended to be a scientific poll and its results should not be extrapolated beyond thosewho did accept our invitation.
1. Will the Federal Reserve raise the federal funds rate at
John Augustine, The Huntington National Bank: Six years into
this economic cycle, ZIRP is now penalizing savers more than it isrewarding borrowers.
Jim Bianco, Bianco Research: No one has successfully gotten offzero. The Japanese tried in 2006 (hike once and then cut). The ECB
tried in 2010 (hike once and then cut to negative). What the Fed isabout to do is unprecedented.
Peter Boockvar, The Lindsey Group: Unfortunately monetary
policy will be the number one influence on the economy and marketsin 2016 to my extreme dismay, but it is what it is. I put a zeroprobability that the Fed's attempt to normalize policy will gosmoothly.
Lou Brien, DRW Trading Group: The previous rate hike cycledemonstrated the Fed has little influence over the long end of the
curve. Thus the 10-year yield reacts to the first derivative of Fedpolicy, the effect that it might have on the economy, particularly
inflation. It is notable that even as the market has high degree ofconfidence that a rate hike is coming, the 10-year yield is closer to2% than it is 2.5% or 3%.
Robert Brusca, Fact and Opinion Economics: The economy hasdeteriorated and is deteriorating. Oil is unraveling. There are NO Fedmembers talking about waiting. The Fed hikes rates with a low
probability of inflation getting to 2% on its horizon. Most in themarkets want a hike, but the Fed hiking rates in this situation isundermining itself. Its desire to be data dependent and to haveforward guidance too has resulted in a severe case of Fed-zosphrenia.
Thomas Costerg, Standard Chartered Bank: We remain skepticalthat the Fed will undertake a multi-year linear tightening path. Ourforecast is for only two hikes, in December and March; we see then
the Fed pausing in June and September 2016. Total debt is high,the US economic cycle is mature, the USD is strong, and inflation isstructurally soft. Growth could weaken by end-2016, and growth
risks then could prompt the Fed to ease policy again. We think theFed will cut rates in December 2016; by March 2017 the FFTR couldbe back at 0-0.25%. We think full QE reinvestment will continue untilat least 2018.
John Donaldson, Haverford Trust Co.: The debate regarding the
Fed is whether a hike is simply a move away from extraordinarily lowrates to less extraordinarily low rates or "a rate hike is a rate hike."
We are in the first camp and believe that this hike is not in the sameleague as most past tightening, especially when the impact on long-term rates is likely to be muted.
Dennis Gartman, The Gartman Letter: In the end we shall seethat it is nonsense that equities and energy prices move downward
in tandem and we shall eventually understand that increasedsupplies of crude oil and nat gas are hugely beneficial; however, in
the interim, as Lord Keynes said, "The markets can remain irrationalfar longer than we can remain solvent."
Stuart Hoffman, PNC Financial Services Group: Fed comes out
of self-induced 7 year rate coma by raising the funds rate inDecember in response to much improved US economy vital signs.
Art Hogan, Wunderlich Securities: What almost every strategistthat has put out a 2016 outlook is getting wrong about the path ofnormalization is that it will not be metronomic, as was the case inthe last cycle. It will be gradual and data dependent. This is not theFOMC of 2004-2006 when we had 25 basis points increases at every
meeting. The other thing to remember is that 1/3 of active investorshave never seen a rate hike and think it is the end of the world. It isnot.
Timothy Hopper, TIAA-CREF: The Fed disappointed markets bynot raising in September. That mistake won't be repeated at thismeeting. Last week, the ECB disappointed markets by not easing
enough. That mistake won't be repeated either. Look for furtherECB easing during the first half of 2016.
John Kattar, Ardent Asset Advisors: A rate hike looked like a
done deal after the last jobs number, but market volatility, highyield, and geopolitics have made it a close call. My non-consensus
view is pass in Dec. with a hike (finally) in March.
David Kotok, Cumberland Advisors: All the forces for disinflationor deflation are public and identified, so the surprise could be thatinflation comes back more quickly than expected and will be morevirulent when it does.
Subodh Kumar, Subodh Kumar & Associates: A rate increase
program likely from the Fed and global growth uncertainty add up tomore volatility until mid- 2016. The cost of financial leverage has
already been rising since early 2015. Many present market problemsrelate to Wall Street assuming more growth than companies candeliver without resorting to excess financial engineering. Capitalmarket recovery, including commodities and more stability in
currencies in second half of 2016, will likely depend on the globalgrowth outlook for 2017. Fixed income is likely to remain underpressure and constrain equity valuation.
Guy LeBas, Janney Montgomery Scott: The big question iswhether inflation will emerge, bringing the PCE back to 2%.Unfortunately, we as an economic society can no longer say whatcauses inflation--QE, wages, and the dollar have less than 20%
explanatory power post-recession--so inflation is essentially arandom variable. Either it doesn't emerge and we get 2 rate hikes in2016 or it does and we get 6 rate hikes. The latter scenario is toughfor intermediate duration bonds in particular.
John Lonski, Moody's: Never before has the Fed initiated a seriesof rate hikes amid a high-yield spread above 600 bp, a rising default
rate, flat to lower profits, sluggish business sales, and severeindustrial commodity price deflation.
Donald Luskin, Trend Macrolytics: The Fed is relying entirely on
the ol' time religion of the Phillips Curve to hike rates in the face ofrecord low inflation, collapsing inflation expectations, a soggy labor
market, and a weakening economy. As usual, a policy error. It willbe quickly reversed, as was Trichet's in 2011.
Rob Morgan, Sethi Financial Group: The time is ideal for a Fedrate hike. Global markets are not gyrating as they were in the fall,
and the Fed needs to begin gathering ammo (by hiking rates) tocombat the next recession.
Chad Morganlander, Stifel Nicolaus (Washington CrossingAdvisors): The deceleration of global growth (external factors) willkeep the Federal Reserve glide path below expectations for 2016.
Lynn Reaser, Point Loma Nazarene University: A succession ofinterest rate hikes could quickly unveil the corners of high leverage
in the U.S. economy and financial markets.
John Ryding, RDQ Economics: The Fed has delayed the beginningof renormalization and risks having to play catch up in 2016, raisingrates more quickly than the market expects.
Allen Sinai, Decision Economics: Where's the inflation? Inflationwill call the tune for much of what happens in 2016.
Diane Swonk, Mesirow Financial: Yellen is a veteran of the1990s; she knows the impact a prolonged expansion can have onliving standards in a low inflation environment. She sees a chance to
actually regain much of what was lost to the crisis by overshootingon unemployment on the downside. This is one of the most powerfulreasons for gradualism.
Peter Tanous, Lynx Investment Advisory: Every taxi driver in NYknows the Fed will raise rates this month, so it is discounted in the
market. But the rate increase may well mark a major change ininterest rate direction--a change that may reverse the trend of
downward rates that started in 1980. What happens when youreverse a downward trend of 35 years? No one knows!! But it maynot be very good.
Scott Wren, Wells Fargo Investment Institute: Inflation is goingto stay low in 2016 and wage growth will stay very modest.
Earnings growth will likely be 6% to 7% next year. This cyclical bullmarket has more room to run in our opinion. Valuations are not
stretched. Nobody is chasing this market as we sit just 4% belowthe all-time record high in the S&P 500. Retail investors areunderinvested in stocks and sitting on too much cash. They havenot been stepping in to buy in any meaningful volume on pullbacks
over the last 5 years. They remain cautious, and, in general, havelargely missed the opportunity presented to them by the big rally offthe March 2009 lows. We continue to believe downside volatility
presents buying opportunities. We want our clients to be optimisticon the outlook for the stock market in 2016. We want themstepping in and putting money to work in equities, especially ondownside days and weeks.