FOMC minutes herald further rate increases by Fed

Analysts at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. (BBH) continue holding a bullish view on the prospects for the U.S. dollar. Their position remained unchanged after the release of the FOMC meeting minutes on Wednesday, which could be generally characterized as hawkish.

As it was stated by the company, specialists maintain their opinion that the dollar weakness at the end of last year was overdone. They currently expect the U.S. national currency to make up for much of the losses in the nearest future.

The analysts also added that the Fed doesn’t intend to ease financial conditions. The meeting held on December 13-14 eventually led to several consequences, such as a 20 basis point rise in 10-year yields, and high yields spreads widening by about 30 basis points. According to the analysts’ opinion, the Fed minutes are a sign that the markets should not underestimate the Fed’s resolve.

It’s worth noting that the growth of the dollar and interest rate increasing traditionally serve as factors to put pressure on the precious metals markets.