HSBC: Federal Reserve expected to hold its fifth consecutive meeting

Ryan Wang, an economist at HSBC, said the Fed was likely to leave its policy rate unchanged at this month's meeting, the fifth in a row. He said policymakers were divided on the near-term policy path ahead of the end-of-month meeting. With Fed Governor Paul Waller already backing a July rate cut, there could be dissent from one or more officials at the rate decision. Wang added that Fed Chairperson Jerome Powell may also face questions about the independence of the Federal Reserve.