Latest news with #MichaelBarr
Bloomberg
4 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Bowman Confirmed by Senate to be Fed Vice Chair for Supervision
Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman was confirmed by the US Senate on Wednesday to serve as the central bank's vice chair for supervision, further signaling a shift to lighter regulation under President Donald Trump. Bowman, a fifth-generation banker and Republican, has long touted the need for more 'tailored' oversight in her speeches. She has signaled significant changes in regulatory priorities and has a friendlier relationship with the bank industry than her predecessor, Michael Barr.
Forbes
6 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
As Fed Enters Blackout Period, June Meeting Expected To Hold Rates Steady
FILE - Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell speaks during a news conference following the Federal ... More Open Market Committee meeting, Wednesday, May 7, 2025, at the Federal Reserve in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File) Ahead of its next interest rate decision on June 11, Federal Open Market Committee members are now in a blackout period. This limits public comments on monetary policy. Recent speeches suggest that June's meeting will result in holding rates at their current 4.25% to 4.5% level. The CME FedWatch Tool, which gauges the implied forecast of fixed income markets implies it is almost a certainty that rates are held steady in June. However, the FOMC is watching the impact of tariffs closely and incoming data this month, and next, could help inform the path for interest rates later in 2025. The summary of a meeting between Jerome Powell and President Trump on May 29, also suggests the President is still looking for lower interest rates, but Powell has no interest in accommodating that if the economic outlook does not support it. For now, policymakers generally believe the U.S. economy is performing well, limited the need to cut interest rates. Federal Reserve Governor Michael Barr summarized the economy in the following way in a speech on May 15. 'In my view, the economy is on solid footing, with solid growth, low and stable unemployment, and inflation continuing to come down towards our 2 percent target. But the outlook has been clouded by trade policies that have led to an increase in uncertainty, contributing to declines in measures of consumer and business sentiment.' Some of these themes were echoed in a more recent speech on June 1 in Korea by Fed Governor Christopher Waller, in exploring the impact of tariffs, he said. 'I do expect tariffs will result in an increase in the unemployment rate that will, all else equal, probably linger. Higher tariffs will reduce spending, and businesses will respond, in part, by reducing production and payrolls.' Then continuing onto inflation Waller said the following, 'I expect the largest factor driving inflation will be tariffs. As I said earlier, whatever the size of the tariffs, I expect the effects on inflation to be temporary, and most apparent in the second half of 2025.' President Trump and Fed Chair Jerome Powell met at the White House on May 29. Powell mentioned in response to a question at the press conference after FOMC's May meeting that he never requests meetings with the President, so presumably the meeting was at the President's request. President Trump has said in several public comments that he believes Powell should cut interest rates immediately. It appears Trump may have made that same point in the meeting with Powell. However, Powell noted that, 'path of policy will depend entirely on incoming economic information and what that means for the outlook.' As such, the President and Fed Chair may have had, in private, a similar debate to their public statements, with Trump calling for lower rates, and Powell stating that interest rates will be set based on economic data. So far, Trumps criticism of Powell doesn't appear to have had any bearing on monetary policy, despite temporarily shaking the markets in late April when it was believed Trump might try to fire Powell. On reported data, the economy continues to show robust job growth and somewhat cooling inflation. However, inflation remains above the FOMC's 2% goal, limiting the prospect for interest rate cuts currently. That's likely why rates won't be cut in June. The big question is tariffs. FOMC policymakers have signaled that they will wait and see what the impact of tariffs are based on the economic data. For now, the impact from tariffs on economic reports is muted, in part because of reporting lags and also because firms are evaluating their response. Once the data of tariff's economic impact becomes more evident, it's likely the FOMC's response will too. However, since that data likely won't come before the June meeting, rates are expected to be held steady.
Sunday World
29-05-2025
- Sunday World
Man who killed Michael Barr in feud says court was wrong to dismiss eyewitness evidence
RIGHTS BREACHED | Counsel for David Hunter (46) also argued that Hunter's privacy rights had been breached by the introduction of mobile phone evidence during his trial. Michael Barr Counsel for David Hunter (46) also argued that Hunter's privacy rights had been breached by the introduction of mobile phone evidence during his trial, in which he was found guilty by the Special Criminal Court in September 2020. Liverpool native Hunter, with an address at Du Cane Road, White City, London, had denied the Kinahan Cartel murder of 35-year-old Michael Barr at the Sunset House pub in Dublin's north inner city on the night of April 25, 2016. At his trial before the non-jury, three-judge Special Criminal Court, Mr Justice Alexander Owens, presiding, sitting with Judge Gerard Griffin and Judge David McHugh, said that the evidence had been heard in a "compelling way" that Hunter was one of the two gunmen who entered the Summerhill pub and murdered Mr Barr by shooting him. Hunter's involvement in the murder had been "fully proved" and the court was "sure of his guilt", remarked Mr Justice Owens. The judge noted that the murderers had failed to burn out the getaway car, which had been abandoned at Walsh Road in Drumcondra a few minutes after the killing, and they had also dropped a burner phone at the getaway scene. He said the major part of a DNA profile taken from a ski mask recovered from the car during the investigation into the shooting of Mr Barr matched the profile of Hunter. Michael Barr News in 90 Seconds - May 29th In a voluntary statement to gardaí, Hunter said that the ski mask was his but that he had dropped it in a car driven by another man when he visited Ireland two months before the murder on a car-stealing exercise. Hunter also claimed he had used the mask on various ski trips with his children to Norway, France, Spain, Scotland, Austria and Switzerland. Mr Justice Owens said that the circumstantial evidence in the case "pointed inextricably" to Hunter's guilt and the facts taken together had established the father-of-five's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and no other rational explanation could be drawn. At the Court of Appeal today, Hunter's legal team argued that the trial court erred in rejecting the evidence of witnesses present in the Sunset House that said there was a difference in height between the two assailants who entered the pub and killed Mr Barr. Michael Bowman SC said that the trial court had set out that Hunter was being convicted because someone dropped a mobile phone at the scene and the car used by the gunmen failed to burn out, meaning that latex masks were not destroyed by the fire. Counsel said that a witness in the pub was very clear in the physical description he gave, identifying a distinction in height between the two men. This witness had said the gunman was wearing a ski mask under a latex mask, but Mr Bowman said the trial court had refused to acknowledge what the witness had seen. He said that this witness identified the gunman as being six feet one or two, while Hunter is five feet ten. Concerning the ski mask from which a DNA profile of Hunter was obtained, Mr Bowman said that in February 2016, Hunter 'on the spur of the moment' came to Ireland for a two-day period to steal cars, bringing the ski mask with him for this purpose. 'It's a very careless criminal who would leave his ski mask behind in a car that was stolen,' remarked Mr Justice John Edwards. Mr Bowman said that the ski mask was correctly observed by the witness in the pub, adding that Hunter does not conform with the height of the assailant given, which meant that there was potentially another individual who wore that mask. Read more Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy remarked that this would make Hunter 'a victim of coincidence' if he had left the mask in a car six weeks before, only for it then to turn up in a car used in a murder. 'Life is a series of unfortunate coincidences,' said Mr Bowman. Hunter's legal team also raised a ground of appeal concerning the mobile phones in the case, arguing that even if the appellant accepted or refused ownership of one of the phones, he was entitled to challenge the phone evidence on the basis of a breach of his privacy rights. It was submitted that the trial court erred in finding that the mere fact that the material in question may pertain to criminal activity meant it could not attract privacy rights. On behalf of the State, Dominic McGinn SC said that at the time of the trial, only two of those involved in the shooting were apprehended, while a third man had not been identified. He said that Hunter and co-accused Eamonn Cumberton were of the same height. Mr McGinn said that of the latex masks found in the car, each had a dominant DNA profile, with one that matched Hunter, one that matched Cumberton, and the last that matched the third man involved, Christopher Slator. He said that each DNA profile from these masks was paired to different items in the car, with Hunter's profile also found on the ski mask. 'The possibility that perhaps someone else picked it up and put it on, that would have required them to leave none of their profile on it,' said Mr McGinn. Concerning the admissibility of the phone evidence, Mr McGinn said there had been a vast change in the legal position concerning mobile phone data since then, but the investigation team could not be faulted for using the legislation at the time to get the information required. Mr Justice Edwards said the court would reserve judgement in the case. Hunter is one of three men to be found guilty of murdering dissident republican Michael Barr. In January 2018, Eamonn Cumberton, of Mountjoy Street, Dublin 7, was convicted of murdering the Tyrone native, while in July 2022, Christopher Slator, of Carnlough Road, Cabra, Dublin 7, was also convicted.
BreakingNews.ie
29-05-2025
- General
- BreakingNews.ie
Gangland killer argues court was wrong to dismiss eyewitness evidence of gunman height
A gangland gunman convicted of murdering dissident Republican Michael Barr in a Dublin pub in 2016 has argued that the trial court was wrong to dismiss the evidence of a witness concerning the height of the man who pulled the trigger. Counsel for David Hunter (46) also argued that Hunter's privacy rights had been breached by the introduction of mobile phone evidence during his trial, in which he was found guilty by the Special Criminal Court in September 2020. Advertisement Liverpool native Hunter, with an address at Du Cane Road, White City, London, had denied the Kinahan Cartel murder of 35-year-old Michael Barr at the Sunset House pub in Dublin's north inner city on the night of April 25th, 2016. At his trial before the non-jury, three-judge Special Criminal Court, Mr Justice Alexander Owens, presiding, sitting with Judge Gerard Griffin and Judge David McHugh, said that the evidence had been heard in a "compelling way" that Hunter was one of the two gunmen who entered the Summerhill pub and murdered Mr Barr by shooting him. Hunter's involvement in the murder had been "fully proved" and the court was "sure of his guilt", remarked Mr Justice Owens. The judge noted that the murderers had failed to burn out the getaway car, which had been abandoned at Walsh Road in Drumcondra a few minutes after the killing, and they had also dropped a burner phone at the getaway scene. Advertisement He said the major part of a DNA profile taken from a ski mask recovered from the car during the investigation into the shooting of Mr Barr matched the profile of Hunter. In a voluntary statement to gardaí, Hunter said that the ski mask was his but that he had dropped it in a car driven by another man when he visited Ireland two months before the murder on a car-stealing exercise. Hunter also claimed he had used the mask on various ski trips with his children to Norway, France, Spain, Scotland, Austria and Switzerland. Mr Justice Owens said that the circumstantial evidence in the case "pointed inextricably" to Hunter's guilt and the facts taken together had established the father-of-five's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and no other rational explanation could be drawn. At the Court of Appeal on Thursday, Hunter's legal team argued that the trial court erred in rejecting the evidence of witnesses present in the Sunset House that said there was a difference in height between the two assailants who entered the pub and killed Mr Barr. Advertisement Michael Bowman SC said that the trial court had set out that Hunter was being convicted because someone dropped a mobile phone at the scene and the car used by the gunmen failed to burn out, meaning that latex masks were not destroyed by the fire. Counsel said that a witness in the pub was very clear in the physical description he gave, identifying a distinction in height between the two men. This witness had said the gunman was wearing a ski mask under a latex mask, but Mr Bowman said the trial court had refused to acknowledge what the witness had seen. He said that this witness identified the gunman as being six feet one or two, while Hunter is five feet ten. Concerning the ski mask from which a DNA profile of Hunter was obtained, Mr Bowman said that in February 2016, Hunter 'on the spur of the moment' came to Ireland for a two-day period to steal cars, bringing the ski mask with him for this purpose. 'It's a very careless criminal who would leave his ski mask behind in a car that was stolen,' remarked Mr Justice John Edwards. Advertisement Mr Bowman said that the ski mask was correctly observed by the witness in the pub, adding that Hunter does not conform with the height of the assailant given, which meant that there was potentially another individual who wore that mask. Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy remarked that this would make Hunter 'a victim of coincidence' if he had left the mask in a car six weeks before, only for it then to turn up in a car used in a murder. 'Life is a series of unfortunate coincidences,' said Mr Bowman. Hunter's legal team also raised a ground of appeal concerning the mobile phones in the case, arguing that even if the appellant accepted or refused ownership of one of the phones, he was entitled to challenge the phone evidence on the basis of a breach of his privacy rights. Advertisement It was submitted that the trial court erred in finding that the mere fact that the material in question may pertain to criminal activity meant it could not attract privacy rights. On behalf of the State, Dominic McGinn SC said that at the time of the trial, only two of those involved in the shooting were apprehended, while a third man had not been identified. He said that Hunter and co-accused Eamonn Cumberton were of the same height. Mr McGinn said that of the latex masks found in the car, each had a dominant DNA profile, with one that matched Hunter, one that matched Cumberton, and the last that matched the third man involved, Christopher Slator. He said that each DNA profile from these masks was paired to different items in the car, with Hunter's profile also found on the ski mask. Ireland Dentist given lifetime ban on owning animals in 'a... Read More 'The possibility that perhaps someone else picked it up and put it on, that would have required them to leave none of their profile on it,' said Mr McGinn. Concerning the admissibility of the phone evidence, Mr McGinn said there had been a vast change in the legal position concerning mobile phone data since then, but the investigation team could not be faulted for using the legislation at the time to get the information required. Mr Justice Edwards said the court would reserve judgement in the case. Hunter is one of three men to be found guilty of murdering dissident republican Michael Barr. In January 2018, Eamonn Cumberton, of Mountjoy Street, Dublin 7, was convicted of murdering the Tyrone native, while in July 2022, Christopher Slator, of Carnlough Road, Cabra, Dublin 7, was also convicted.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
What banks should expect with Trump tax bill back on track
Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr is confident that even with new trade agreements, the tariff impacts will be around for a long time. Data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found consumers are less confident that they can make minimum debt payments in the near term. Wall Street bonuses, like bank stocks, are subject to the crushing impact of tariffs. President Donald Trump has been at the forefront of bankers' minds in recent weeks, as the tariff pause continues and the fight to advance House Republicans' tax and spending bill waxes and wanes. The House Ways and Means Committee saw initial success on May 14 when it advanced the massive tax package featuring an intact credit union federal tax exemption, boons for agricultural lenders and community banks, and the potential to unravel a rule requiring payments platforms to provide those who earned more than $600 for the year with 1099-K tax forms. That progress hit a roadblock on May 16, when the House Budget Committee voted 21-16 in favor of not passing the tax and spending bill, as Republican representatives such as Chip Roy of Texas, Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Josh Brecheen of Oklahoma and Andrew Clyde of Georgia joined Democrats in voting against Trump's "big, beautiful bill." Those who broke from party lines against the package are calling for increased cuts to Medicaid and other programs, while remaining conscious of demands for larger state and local tax, or SALT, deductions from Democrats. "We are writing checks we cannot cash, and our children are going to pay the price," Roy told the committee. "So, I am a 'no' on this bill unless serious reforms are made." The bill resumed progress on May 18 after the committee cleared the legislation along party lines, but no details on what changes caused the reversal were immediately available. Read more: House finance budget bill nixes PCAOB, curbs CFPB funding Bankers breathed a sigh of relief when Trump's 90-day tariff pause was announced in early April but have remained on edge as the U.S. continues to iron out trade agreements with foreign partners. A recent ceasefire between the U.S. and China saw bank stocks rally on May 12, as the KBW Nasdaq Bank Index was up more than 4.5% on the day, outpacing the S&P 500, which was up 2.6%, and Nasdaq, which was up 4.2%. Further deals are on the horizon, as Trump said on May 16 that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick will begin reaching out to foreign leaders to notify them "they'll be paying to do business in the United States." The Federal Reserve has remained steadfast in its wait-and-see approach to shifting its benchmark interest rate, but board governors haven't shied away from offering predictions into what the short- and long-term impacts of the tariffs could be. "Potential disruptions to supply chains and distribution networks are particularly acute for small businesses, which are less diversified, less able to access credit and hence more vulnerable to adverse shocks," Fed Gov. Michael Barr said in recorded remarks for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's 2025 Northeast/Mid-Atlantic Small Business Credit Symposium. Others like Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson have remained more reserved in their judgment. "Various measures of consumer and business sentiment have declined sharply this year, and I will be watching very carefully for signs of weakening economic activity in hard data," Jefferson said. Read more: Powell leaves door open to staying at Fed past 2026 Dive into the latest coverage on the market ups and downs, how banks are impacted by various proposed legislation and how more tariff threats could come soon. Much of the Federal Reserve isn't rushing to raise or lower interest rates in the face of how Trump's tariff plays will hit the U.S. economy, but that doesn't mean predictions are already starting to form. Fed Gov. Michael Barr said while speaking at the Reykjavik Economic Conference in Iceland that he "expect[s] tariffs to lead to higher inflation in the United States and lower growth both in the United States and abroad starting later this year," specifically through supply chain disruption that will create "persistent upward pressure on inflation." While Barr's outlook was less than optimistic, he remained confident that the Fed's benchmark interest rate joined with low unemployment will help the U.S. economy weather new market uncertainty. "Thus, the FOMC may be in a difficult position if we were to see both rising inflation and rising unemployment," Barr said. Read more: Fed's Barr expects high inflation, slow growth from tariffs The first step toward Trump's plan to enshrine the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act happened on May 14, as the House Ways and Means Committee pushed ahead with a roughly 400-page tax plan along party lines. Agricultural lenders and those with fewer than 75 shareholders notched wins with respective sections on exempting taxation interest on loans secured by farmland and residential mortgages under $750,000 in small towns and cementing the Section 199(a) pass-through deduction to 23%. Unfortunately for bankers, the contentious credit union tax exemption survived the chopping block. "Today, House Republicans continued strong progress toward enacting President Trump's economic agenda and preventing historic tax hikes on families and businesses," Bessent said in a statement supporting the bill. "The President's plan for prosperity is in full swing as a unified Republican Party works to drive economic growth while lowering costs from coast to coast." Read more: What banks should watch in the 'big, beautiful' tax bill Data released last month by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that in addition to household views on finance dropping noticeably in April, a greater share of consumers were more likely to miss a minimum debt payments. The average perceived probability of missing a minimum debt payment over the next three months increased year over year from 12.9% in 2024 to 13.9% for April 2025. Equally worrisome were drops in other measurements like the median expected growth in household income and year-ahead expectations about households' financial situations. "I think it's all about tariffs," Jay Hawkins, a senior economist at PNC Financial Services Group, told American Banker. "Ultimately, if they do stay in place, no matter what form they're in or what level, that's going to increase costs, it's going to increase inflation and that's going to be passed along to the consumer." Read more: More consumers expect to fall behind on debts, survey shows The 2020 Securities and Exchange lawsuit against crypto firm Ripple, CEO Brad Garlinghouse and Cofounder Chris Larsen over allegations of illegally profiting from selling crypto token XRP is nearing an end. The agreement filed this month will prompt Ripple to pay out $50 million to the SEC, much less than the $2 billion the SEC originally asked for, and get the other $75 million in escrow back. The agreement will also remove the securities law requirement placed on Ripple by the SEC. Claims from the SEC centered on accusations against Ripple and the two executives of profiting off the sale of unregistered securities to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars, then using the more than $1 billion in profits from offloading XRP to account for operating expenses. In return, the defendants argued the coin does not classify as a security and therefore is not subject to the scrutiny of the SEC. "This is it — the moment we've been waiting for. … The SEC will drop its appeal — a resounding victory for Ripple, for crypto, every way you look at it," Garlinghouse wrote in a March 19 X post. Read more: SEC, Ripple settlement agreement drops fine to $50 million Trump's tariffs are putting the squeeze on almost all aspects of the U.S. economy, and it seems like Wall Street's expectations for the Trump administration aren't immune from similarly downtrending forecasts. A new report from compensation consulting firm Johnson Associates predicts that incentive compensation for some investment bankers could fall by as much as 20% in 2025, due mainly to a pullback from corporate clients facing increased market volatility and global trade uncertainty. The report goes on to highlight both the slowdown of merger and acquisition activity and a general pause on initial public offerings as key factors weighing down on advisory fees and equity underwriting revenues. "Tariffs and geopolitical concern are [the] biggest wildcard," the report said. Read more: Tariffs, uncertainty likely to squeeze Wall Street bonus pay Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
