Powell and Yellen Speak, Markets Pump & Dump

Stocks inched higher early in the day as the world waited for The Fed’s interest rate decision and commentary on the economy.

Despite an as-expected 0.25% rate hike, markets initially broke higher with the NASDAQ up as much as 2% on the day before finishing down 1.3%.

Powell maintained a dovish tone (bullish) throughout his press conference Q&A - admitting the committee considered leaving rates unchanged - but Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen ruined the optimism with comments of her own about FDIC insurance. The incompetent veteran chose violence - indicating there are no plans to expand the insurance program to cover all depositors beyond $250,000.

Fairly standard comments in-line with expectations - but we all know that the Fed would step in should the crisis spread to other banks. It’s empty posturing, in our opinion.

The only shiny object on the day was gold - which rallied 1.7% in the face of a broad sell off.

Here’s what we brrr’d today:

• Fed Decision, Powell and Yellen Comments

• Gold and Bitcoin price action

WHAT WE OWN

$BTC, $ETH, $NVDA, $AAPL, $COIN, $XOM, $TSLA, $MSFT, $AMZN

We launched the newsletter on March 15 with $10K into each of the 9 assets.

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Federal Reserve raises rates 0.25% to 4.75%, highest since 2007 amid bank crisis

• Rate now at 4.75%-5%, highest since 2007

• Fed expects to raise rates slightly higher and to leave them there until 2024.

• In contrast, the market expects rates to be at 4% by the end of the year, implying a policy pivot and rates cuts going forward

• Fed officials say the job market remains hot, giving them room to raise interest rates

• Fed expects banking issues to tighten credit conditions and weigh on economic growth, having a similar effect as interest rate hikes do

• Expectations for a 0.50% hike were widespread as recently as March 10, but recent banking crisis forced the Fed to slow down and only hike by 0.25%.

Yahoo Finance

Gold Higher While Bitcoin Slumps

• Traders and investors had been exiting cash positions for Gold and Bitcoin since banking crisis unfolded, but Gold outperformed today while Bitcoin re-correlated with tech stocks.

• Gold’s narrative strengthens when interest rate expectations fall, since yield is less important when rates are low.

• Gold is also seen as a hedge against hyperinflation as a limited-supply hard asset

• Bitcoin faltered on the day, but is still up sharply (22%) since the beginning of the banking crisis

TWEET OF THE DAY

Bitmex founder Arthur Hayes remains bullish

Gold bug Peter Schiff is calling Powell’s bluff.

AI ART OF THE DAY

Banks are on fire, nothing to see here!

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The BRRR is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. Please consult with your investment, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions.