The Federal Reserve may be in a box when it comes to conducting monetary policy — a scenario likely exacerbated by disappointing jobs report numbers released last week.
Just 38,000 jobs were added to U.S. payrolls in May, the weakest performance in nearly six years. The data stoked new fears about the economy's health, and threw cold water on the Fed's recent hints at higher rates in the coming months.
"Friday's data again pushes back decisions," said Saxo Bank chief economist and chief investment officer Steen Jakobsen told CNBC recently. "The ability of the Fed to move now is almost entirely based on their 'need' or 'want.'"
Late last month, Fed chief Janet Yellen said in a speech that an interest rate hike was "appropriate" in the near term, and could rise gradually. With that in mind, Jakobsen argued the Fed has painted itself into a corner, as well as other central banks around the world.
The 'new nothingness'
Back in April 2015, he published a note declaring that zero growth, zero inflation, and zero reforms have left countries drowning in a "new nothingness" and a "world stuck in neutral. "
The issues concerning him the most right now: The Fed appears to be losing its communication battle, and how it's been making policy decisions as the U.S. deals with the lowest productivity in decades.
"You have to be worried the trend will continue and the Fed will make it worse," Jakobsen told CNBC's "Futures Now" last week.
"We need to be nervous about the consequences of what I perceive to be one of the biggest monetary mistakes of the Federal Reserve," he said. "The fact they move not based on their mandate—they move based on the U.S. economy which is still way, way below its potential growth."
According to its mandate, the Fed has a responsibility to make decisions based on full employment and price stability.
"I don't really see why the Fed should move based on economics and external factors like the which remains relatively strong," he said.
Jakobsen still believes the Fed will hike interest rates at its July meeting, even though he says this would be a mistake. He says it should wait to raise rates until the economic data supports it, and there's no timetable for that.