DWS Chief US Economist Christian Scherrmann said that recent economic data in the US has been mixed, with the labor market appearing to soften while inflation remains stubborn. Despite this, DWS believes that efforts to contain inflation have made progress and there is still a chance for further interest rate cuts. DWS has revised its forecast for rate cuts by the end of 2025 from 5 to 3 (including one in December), and expects the central bank to slow down the pace of rate cuts after the December meeting. In terms of timing, the bank predicts that the Federal Reserve may switch to adjusting rates quarterly in the first half of 2025, then pause the normalization of its rate policy in the second half of the year. Furthermore, DWS states that future fiscal and trade policies remain major unknown factors. Fed Chair Powell has explicitly warned against making excessive assumptions or expectations, but DWS believes that at least the extension of provisions of the CARES Act should be considered in future outlooks. Unlike other policy proposals (such as tax cuts, tariffs, or immigration), there seems to be some consensus among lawmakers on extending existing stimulus measures. As a result, households and businesses may anticipate stronger domestic demand, leading to increased hiring or maintaining current levels of consumption. DWS believes that the Federal Reserve will signal the need for more time to lower rates to a neutral level (which the bank expects to be between 3 and 3.5%). Therefore, the bank expects that the upcoming economic forecast summary will show continued strong growth in 2025, but with fewer rate cuts and a slight increase in inflation.