No kidding—did you notice? The big players on Wall Street have been secretly changing the script lately.

The same main characters who were shouting "interest rate cuts coming soon" last year have all changed their tune now. Citibank, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and JPMorgan have all made a 180-degree turn in their stance.

So, how exactly are they changing it? Citibank pushed the first rate cut from January to March; Goldman Sachs moved it from March to June; Morgan Stanley took it even further, jumping from January straight to June; and the most extreme is JPMorgan, which outright said don’t expect any cuts before 2026, and even hinted at possibly raising rates again in 2027.

Why the sudden change? Basically, it’s because the US economy is proving to be much more resilient than expected. Employment data remains solid, wages continue to rise, and the pace of price declines isn’t meeting expectations. Even the Federal Reserve has admitted they’re "not in a rush." The market has finally realized: it looks like we’ll be staying in a high-interest-rate environment for longer.

What does this mean for us practically?

First, the US dollar will continue to stay strong. Second, returns on financial products might hold up a bit longer. Plus, since borrowing costs can’t drop anytime soon, certain stock sectors will face increased pressure.

Next, everyone is waiting for three key moments: the March Federal Reserve meeting, spring inflation data, and whether rates will really start to be cut in June. But honestly, this script could change at any moment. Market expectations are more unpredictable than the weather—this time, the expectation of rate cuts has been "slapped in the face" by reality.

Overall, cheap money isn’t coming back anytime soon. We need to learn to adapt to this new high-interest-rate environment, which might become the "normal operation" moving forward.