Marking Ten Years Since the Fed Last Began a Tightening Cycle

The end of May 2014 marks an interesting milestone in the world of central banking. It’s been ten years since the most influential central bank in the world – the Federal Reserve – last began a tightening cycle.

Fed raised interest rates

That’s right. It’s now been a full ten years since the start of the last tightening cycle and about eight years since the Federal Reserve last raised interest rates!

The incredible length of time from the last time the US central bank raised rates makes one wonder – have investors forgotten that central bankers can raise rates quickly?

Here’s the likely reason investors have forgotten about agile central bankers.

The figure shows the past nine Federal...