THE United States Federal Reserve Board will announce an interest rate cut of a quarter per cent before the end of the year, says GT Capital Management chairman and chief economist John Greenwood.
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) failed to provide a much-anticipated rate cut when it met late last month.
The Hong Kong stock market has been fuelled by expectations of a rate cut each time the Fed Reserve Board has met to consider interest rates.
Mr Greenwood, who is based in San Francisco, said in Hong Kong yesterday that he based his forecast on a slowing of inflationary pressures in the US.
He expected the Fed rate to drop to 5.5 per cent from 5.75 per cent.
He did not expect this would happen at the next FOMC meeting, but would come at either of the last two FOMC meetings before the end of the year.
