Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to appear at Harvard University at 10:30 a.m. ET in a moderated discussion with an undergraduate economics class, with the event streamed live on the Fed’s official YouTube channel. There are no prepared remarks, but markets are treating the session as a live read on policy thinking.
Rate expectations remain firmly restrained
Twelve days earlier, the Fed left rates unchanged for a second straight meeting at 3.5% to 3.75%. At his March 18 press conference, Powell said inflation progress had been “not as much as we had hoped.” The dot plot still points to one cut in 2026, while CME FedWatch shows a 95.3% probability of no change at the April 29 meeting, with 0% odds of a cut and a 4.7% chance of a hike.
The macro setting is adding strain. The report says Brent crude has climbed to $114, while the US-Israel-Iran war has entered its fifth week since the February 28 strikes. Rising oil is adding inflation pressure at a time when growth is already slowing. That leaves Powell facing a stagflation-style problem, where inflation runs hotter as economic momentum weakens.
Bitcoin traders are watching every word
Crypto markets have a well-known sensitivity to Powell’s tone. Dovish signals tend to support Bitcoin, while hawkish comments often weigh on it. The article notes that after the March 18 FOMC meeting, Bitcoin fell as expectations for rate cuts were pushed back.
At the time of publication, Bitcoin was trading near $67,833, up more than 1% over the past 24 hours. Even so, the near-term setup remains under pressure. On-chain analyst Willy Woo said his models place a possible Bitcoin bottom in the $46,000 to $54,000 range, anchored by the CVDD Floor Model at $45,500. Separate analysts also flagged a bearish triangle on the daily chart, with a breakdown potentially targeting levels below $50,000.
A late-term appearance with added market weight
The report also says Powell’s term as Fed chair ends on May 15, leaving just one more scheduled FOMC meeting before a successor takes over. That makes the Harvard event notable despite its informal format, because traders and reporters are likely to parse his comments for clues on inflation, growth, and the path of rates.