Yellen will reiterate “wait and see” message

In her semi-annual testimony to Congress this week (to the House on Wednesday and the Senate on Thursday), Fed Chair Janet Yellen is unlikely to say that a March rate hike is completely off the table, even though it is effectively. She will stick to the Fed’s message that it’s too soon to tell what impact the tightening of financial conditions will have on the economy. But given the current uncertainty, the earliest the Fed will raise interest rates again is now probably this summer.