花旗：沃什或采取循序渐进方式缩表 避免重燃货币市场紧张情绪

Core Viewpoint - Citigroup strategists suggest that Kevin Warsh, nominated as the Federal Reserve Chair, is likely to gradually reduce the central bank's balance sheet of approximately $6.6 trillion to avoid reigniting tensions in the money market [1] Group 1: Federal Reserve's Balance Sheet Management - Any resumption of Quantitative Tightening (QT) could pressure the $12.6 trillion repurchase market, which is crucial for banks' short-term borrowing needs [1] - The Federal Reserve paused its balance sheet reduction in December due to significant fluctuations in the repurchase market, indicating a high threshold for restarting QT [1] - Warsh, a former Fed governor, has long advocated for a substantial reduction in the central bank's financial footprint, which expanded significantly during the global financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic [1] Group 2: Potential Strategies Under Warsh's Leadership - Citigroup identifies several "de-leveraging" options under Warsh, with the least resistance path being the rolling of maturing long-term Treasury bonds into short-term debt to lower the weighted average maturity of holdings [2] - Other measures may include reducing the current monthly Treasury bond purchase of $40 billion or allowing mortgage-backed securities (MBS) to mature naturally [2] - The baseline scenario anticipates a reduction in monthly purchases to about $20 billion starting mid-April, continuing throughout the year [2] Group 3: Treasury Issuance and Market Dynamics - The Treasury may welcome foreign demand for Treasury bonds from the Fed, leading to a greater reliance on short-term debt issuance and delaying the increase in long-term bond issuance [3] - Citigroup forecasts that the issuance of long-term bonds may not begin until November 2026, with a risk of further delays until February 2027 [3]