Fed should continue QE tapering for 17 months: Wilbur Ross

The US Federal Reserve should gradually start to taper beginning September, says Wilbur Ross, Wilbur Ross & Co. According to him, reducing bond buying by USD 5 billion per month over 17 months would get them to zero net purchases at the end of the period.

"Though it would still mean they would buy some USD 730 billion more securities, but that would be about half of what they would buy during that same period if they would not taper," he told CNBC-TV18 in an interview. Also Read: Best time for Indian market to progress now: Chris Palmer Meanwhile, Ross is worried that President Barack Obama has lost all credibility in international matters in general, with him drawing a red line in the sand on the Syria issue and then not living up to it. Below is the verbatim transcript of Wilbur Ross' interview on CNBC-TV18 Q: What is the sense you are getting the Fed will do. Will it largely stick with that 10 billion tapering that the market is widely expecting? A: I do not know what the Fed will do. I think I know what they should do and they should gradually start to taper beginning at their September 18 meeting and this idea that this USD 5 billion per month over 17 months that would get them to zero net purchases at the end of the period. That would still mean they would buy some USD 730 billion more securities, but that would be about half of what they would buy during that same period if they would not taper. So, I think they should taper. I hope they will and I think frankly that knocking Larry Summers out is a very good thing because my fear was that Summers would do some sort of an extreme thing to try to put himself back on to the map whereas the two other potential appointees, Janet Yellen and Donald Kohn neither one is going to do anything weird and so either one of them would be stable influence on the market. Q: What does all this amount to in terms of an equity market movement, do you think the scope of disappointment is very high purely because global markets are sitting close to all time highs and if we do see a correction, what could the quantum look like? A: I am worried that President Barack Obama made two mistakes; one, drawing a red line in the sand on Syria and then once he had drawn it, not living up to it. The fear is that he has lost all credibility in international matters in general.