Bloomberg Americas Monetary Summit

The Fed on interest rates – it’s all about data.

If economic data is positive, the central bank will finally move to raise interest rates, New York Federal Reserve Bank President William Dudley said at Bloomberg’s first-ever Americas Monetary Summit on Monday, April 20. The event featured central bank leaders from Canada, Chile, Colombia, Peru and the United States, as well as Brazil’s Finance Minister.

Nothing is set in stone, Dudley said, as there are still vulnerabilities in several important emerging market economies. The timing for raising rates is data dependent, he told the crowd of more than 150 clients, officials and press at Bloomberg headquarters. The Fed will move short-term interest rates when needed to generate financial market conditions to help counter inflation and boost employment, he added.

The most valuable currency in the financial markets is reliable information, said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P., who opened the event. Breaking news is critical information for investors and events like the Americas Summit provides valuable market insights. That transparency increases investor confidence in the market and leads to better decision-making, which leads to more economic growth, he said.

Brazil’s Finance Minister Joaquim Levy said Brazil is moving in the right direction and its Congress needs to approve social welfare cuts and a tax increase to ensure that this year’s fiscal target is met. The fiscal readjustments come as Brazil stands in a context of the biggest recession in a quarter century.

For Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz, the biggest risk to his country’s monetary policy outlook is actually a good thing: that the U.S. economy proves stronger than expected. He also signaled that the “insurance” he took out in January with the 25 basis point rate cut was just about right.

Chilean Central Bank Governor Rodrigo Vergara said that when the price of commodities started to come down, the Chilean economy started to weaken. He looks forward to the Chilean economy getting back to normal, which may happen when the U.S. economy is doing fine, said Vergara.

Colombia Central Bank Governor Jose Dario Uribe said that Colombia was in a good position to have a flexible exchange rate and that he feels comfortable with the peso depreciation. He added that the U.S. Fed has been doing a good job in being as transparent as possible and trying to make as little noise as possible.

Peru Central Bank Governor Julio Velarde agreed and said that the Peruvian financial marketplace has already taken into account the possibility of a U.S. Federal Reserve rate increase.

Jose Enrique Arrioja, Bloomberg News Editor-at-Large, Latin America

Event Information

This event was held on Monday April 20, 2015 from 8:15 am – 11:00 am EST
Click here to download the agenda.

To see post event content and videos, visit the links below:
In English at https://www.bloomberg.com
In Spanish at www.bloomberg.com/latam
In Portuguese at www.bloomberg.com.br

Read William C. Dudley’s Speech on “The U.S. Monetary Policy Outlook and its Global Implications”

Excerpts from Michael R. Bloomberg

“This summit is a rare opportunity to hear from key policymakers from many of the biggest economies in the Americas, including our own. Each of the countries represented today have influential central banks that help set the tone for their national economies, and all of these economies are more interconnected than ever. Our company is helping make that possible, by giving investors information they need to find opportunities across borders.” Read more.

Event Photos

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Speakers

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Michael R. Bloomberg, Founder/CEO, Bloomberg LP
Michael R. Bloomberg is a businessman and philanthropist who served three terms as mayor of the City of New York. Bloomberg is the founder and owner of Bloomberg LP, the leading financial news and information provider worldwide. Bloomberg LP has over 320,000 subscribers and 15,500 employees in over 192 locations globally.

William C. Dudley, President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York
William C. Dudley became the 10th president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on January 27th, 2009. In that capacity, he serves as vice president and permanent member of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), responsible for formulating monetary policy of the nation group. Download full bio.

Joaquim Levy, Brazil’s Finance Minister
Joaquim Levy is an economist who is currently the Minister of Finance of Brazil. He took office on January 1, 2015, during the inauguration of the second term of Dilma Rousseff, the current president of Brazil. Prior to his appointment, he was president of Bradesco Asset Management, a division of Bradesco, the second largest private bank in Brazil. Download full bio.

Stephen S. Poloz, Governor of the Bank of Canada
Stephen Poloz has been Governor of the Bank of Canada since June 3, 2013. Mr. Poloz has over 30 years experience in the public and private sector. An economist by training, the Bank of Canada joined in 1981 and held a number of increasingly senior management positions in a span of 14 years. Download full bio.

José Darío Uribe, Governor of the Bank of the Republic of Colombia
Jose Dario Uribe E. is the Governor of the Bank of the Republic of Colombia since January 2005. Previously, he worked as the deputy governor of the Central Bank from January 1998 Director of the Research Department of the Bank of September 1993-1998. Download full bio.

Julio Velarde, President of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru
Julio Velarde is the Governor of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru from October 2006 to date. He served as President of the Latin American Reserve Fund (FOR) from 2004 to October 2006 and was a member of the Board of Governors of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru between 1990-1992 and 2001-2003. Download full bio.

Rodrigo Vergara, Governor of the Central Bank of Chile
Rodrigo Vergara has been Governor of the Central Bank of Chile since December 2011, and was appointed to the Board of Directors of Banco Central de Chile in December 2009 for a period of ten years. Between 1985 and 1995 he worked at the Central Bank of Chile, reaching the position of Chief Economist in 1992. Download full bio.