Is central bank independence at risk in the U.S.? · Yes (it's very risky to even bring up potential changes) · Maybe (targeted reforms and more ...
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| | Outlook Is central bank independence at risk in the U.S.?
· Yes (it's very risky to even bring up potential changes) · Maybe (targeted reforms and more transparency might be needed) · No (nothing is changing despite all the saber rattling) · N/A (has policy ever been isolated from political interference?) Take the survey here and don't forget to share your thoughts in the WSB comments section. | | Featured  Want to get more from investing efforts? Take our world-class Premium service for a test drive. Sign up now, and you can try all of Premium's powerful tools and resources: - Our proprietary Quant ratings, plus ratings from Wall St. and analysts on Seeking Alpha
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Any content and tools on the platform are offered for information purposes only. Seeking Alpha does not take account of your objectives or financial situation and does not offer any personalized investment advice. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. | | Top News  Getty Images As election season kicks into high gear, much of the campaign content and messaging has centered around the economy. Monetary policy has also been in the mix due to its effects on borrowing costs, which impact everything from mortgage rates and car loans to credit cards and corporate balance sheets. The Federal Reserve is also at a key moment in its latest cycle, with calls to begin cutting rates before a downturn in demand and rising unemployment trigger trouble for the economy.
Snapshot: Last week, Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump announced that a president should have "at least say" when it comes to the Federal Reserve, while VP candidate JD Vance followed up with support over the weekend. "Well, not direct," he responded to CNN's Dana Bash, when asked if a president should direct the Federal Reserve on how to handle interest rates. "The president [already] has a say in the sense that he appoints the Federal Reserve's governors. The political leadership of this country should have more say over the monetary policy. That fundamentally should be a political decision."
"I couldn't disagree more strongly," Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris told reporters during a campaign stop in Arizona on Saturday. "The Fed is an independent entity, and as president, I would never interfere in the decisions that the Fed makes." Business leaders have also weighed in on the latest exchange, with Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan noting that, "if you look around the world's economies, and you see where central banks are independent and operate freely, they tend to fare better than the ones that don't."
Outlook: While it's not exactly clear what "having say" means, the Federal Reserve hasn't always been that independent since its founding in 1913. Congress and the executive branch heavily controlled policy until the Monetary Accord of 1951, which formally separated government debt management from monetary policy. However, there have still been other presidents since then, like Truman, Johnson and Nixon, who have also clashed with their Fed chairs. "Independence is essential, literally essential," Jerome Powell said during his semi-annual testimony last month. "I think that's broadly understood, particularly on Capitol Hill, among both sides of the aisle." Take the WSB survey.
| | Global With the latest reports indicating that Iran will attempt an attack on Israel this week, the Pentagon has revealed the deployment of a guided missile submarine, a rare public announcement aimed at reestablishing deterrence in the region. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has also accelerated the timeline for the arrival of the USS Abraham Lincoln strike group, putting energy and other sectors on watch. Attacks on U.S. assets have ramped up over the past week, with several U.S. and coalition personnel injured in a drone attack in Syria on Friday following a rocket strike that wounded five American personnel at the Ain al-Asad airbase in Iraq. (5 comments)
| | Sports The U.S. and China have come away from the Paris Summer Olympics tied with 40 gold medals, though Team USA notched an overall victory with 126 total medals. Another clear winner of the Games was Comcast-owned (NASDAQ:CMCSA) NBCUniversal, which drew a 14-day Total Audience Delivery average of 31.6M viewers during the Paris and U.S. prime-time periods. That's up 77% from the 17.8M logged in Tokyo in 2021, translating into big advertising dollars. More in the making? NBCUniversal has the rights to the Olympic Games through 2032. (2 comments) | | Automotive An electric vehicle blaze in South Korea is sparking questions as well as talk about new rules for the industry. A major fire on Aug. 1 that took eight hours to put out - and destroyed or damaged about 140 cars - was found to have been caused by an unplugged Mercedes-Benz EV (OTCPK:MBGYY) that was parked below a residential building. In fact, over 600 such fires have occurred in underground parking lots in the country over the past decade. South Korean officials are now weighing whether to require electric vehicle makers to disclose their battery brands at a time when EV sales growth is slowing globally. (21 comments)
| | Today's Markets In Asia, Japan closed. Hong Kong +0.1%. China -0.1%. India -0.1%.
In Europe, at midday, London +0.4%. Paris flat. Frankfurt +0.3%.
Futures at 7:30, Dow +0.2%. S&P +0.2%. Nasdaq +0.2%. Crude +1.2% to $77.75. Gold +0.3% to $2480.30. Bitcoin -1.3% to $59,887.
Ten-year Treasury Yield unchanged at 3.95%
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