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So why is the ECB lowering rates before the FED? It used to be that the FED lead and the rest of the world pretty much followed on it. Now the FED is lagging. Is it because they are scared of a second wave of inflation? Why else wouldn't they lower rates at this point? Assuming the economy is doing well, it wouldn't be a panic cut, it would just be lowering rates because the inflation goal is being achieved, but they aren't in a hurry yet. So what does this signal? It signals that the economy is doing good and lowering rates isn't needed? That's how I read it.
Rates are usually lower if there is a recession in the economy. The Fed is not cutting rates, obviously, because the U.S. economy is in better shape than the Eurozone economy. This is understandable, Europe has lost cheap resources forever and is now buying American liquefied natural gas, green energy is unable to fully meet the needs of industry (as evidenced by the recent power outage in Spain). A large sales market has also been lost, which is already 100% occupied by China (for example, the Russian automotive market). In this situation, the U.S. economy is in a much better position than the European economy. I wouldn't be surprised if interest rates are ever lowered to negative values. By the way, this happened several years ago.