DiscoverBoating.com's February Content Engages New Boaters

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FEATURED INDUSTRY NEWS DiscoverBoating.com’s February Content Engages New Boaters In February, Discover Boating, powered by NMMA and MRAA, featured timely content that provides helpful tips and resources for new and existing boaters. February content included spotlighting Black-owned businesses in the marine industry in celebration of Black History Month. Read More LEADING ECONOMIC AND POLICY NEWS Federal Reserve Chair: Inflation Rate Is “Not Far From” Where The Fed Wants It To Be Bloomberg reports that in testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell “reiterated that it’s likely the Fed will cut interest rates this year. ‘We’re waiting to become more confident that inflation is moving sustainably at 2%,’ he said.” Powell added, “When we do get that confidence – and we’re not far from it – it’ll be appropriate to begin to dial back the level of restriction.” According to Bloomberg, Powell “faced another wave of questions about proposals to boost bank capital requirements, and said the central bank ‘won’t hesitate’ to abandon particular draft rules or even the entire proposal put forward last year as officials work toward a consensus on the matter.” Reuters reports Powell “has been reluctant to declare the inflation battle finished, and cautioned in testimony to the Senate panel...that further progress back to the Fed’s 2% target was not assured.”         Bloomberg reports separately that Powell pushed back on the notion that surge pricing will accelerate US inflation, saying the companies should be left to set prices. “The price mechanism is incredibly important in our economy,” Powell said Thursday. “I think we need to give companies the freedom to do that as long as they’re not fixing prices or failing to disclose the nature of the price changes to the public.” Also reporting is the Wall Street Journal. Stock Prices, Interest Rates Drove Household Wealth To Record High Of $156.2 Trillion At End Of 2023 Reuters reports “US household wealth rose to a record of roughly $156.2 trillion at the end of 2023,” due primarily to a surge in stock prices. Stocks “held directly or indirectly through mutual funds, life insurance policies or retirement accounts rose by $4.7 trillion to $47.6 trillion from $42.9 trillion,” offsetting “real estate values that declined by $0.6 trillion to about $49 trillion after rising in the two previous quarters.” Additionally, interest rates helped deposit account balances rise “by nearly $270 billion to $18 trillion,” breaking “a record long six-quarter streak of declines.” Bloomberg Report: NEC Director Pushed For “Slightly Rosier” Rate Projection In Biden Budget Bloomberg reports that National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard “successfully pressed to adjust a White House forecast in a way that resulted in a slightly rosier outlook in the president’s forthcoming budget plan.” According to Bloomberg, “The disagreement was over forecasts for 10-year Treasury yields in the budget, a linchpin estimate that is intertwined with other measures, like debt service costs.” Bloomberg says “forecasts in the president’s budget proposal – scheduled for release Monday – are typically set by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young and the chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, Jared Bernstein.” However, during a meeting in October, Brainard “disagreed with Yellen, Young and Bernstein over the 10-year interest rate projections and predicted a slightly lower rate,” and “the result of Brainard’s push was to lower the projected rate by 10 basis points across three years of the forecast.” US-China Trade War Enabling Texas To Siphon “Dollars And Jobs” From California The Los Angeles Times reports Texas “has begun to siphon trade dollars and uncounted jobs away from” California’s shipping industry, due to an ongoing trade war with China. The Times explains that to get around US tariffs and trade restrictions, “Chinese firms have sharply stepped up investments into Mexico and been moving products into the United States by truck instead of shipping by sea through the massive port and distribution systems in Southern California.” This shift has made Texas “a greater magnet for economic activity that was previously located in California.” The Times adds that China’s “share of all containers entering the Port of L.A. still remains dominant, at 53% last year, although that’s down from 57% in 2022.” S&P 500, Nasdaq Hit New Record Highs CNBC reports, “Stocks rose Thursday, pushing the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite back to record highs, as hope over easing inflation and gains in tech aided Wall Street’s midweek bounce.” The S&P 500 “advanced 1.03% to 5,157.36, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.51% to 16,273.38. Both notched all-time highs during the session, while the S&P 500 also clinched a closing record. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 130.30 points, or 0.34%, to close at 38,791.35.” Previous Top Stories  • Recreational Boating Industry Decries Advancement Of Vessel Speed Rule  • Federal Reserve Chair Says Rate Cuts Likely This Year, But Fed Waiting For More Data Before Acting

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