Sooner or later, America’s financial system could seize up

Masterly inactivity is back in vogue at the Federal Reserve’s rate-setting committee. After its meeting on June 14th it kept its benchmark rate on hold, rather than raising it, for the first time since January 2022. One or two more rate rises may lie ahead: Jerome Powell, the Fed’s chairman, suggested so in his post-meeting press conference, and that is what investors expect. Gradually, though, the main debate among Fed watchers has shifted from how high the rate will go to how long it will stay there before being cut.