WASHINGTON, Jan 13 (Reuters) – St. Louis Fed president Alberto Musalem said on Tuesday that while he was hopeful U.S. productivity is rising, the Fed should not yet bet on it to return inflation to 2%, and added there was no “near term” reason to cut interest rates further with inflation still above target. “I […]
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Fed’s Musalem: Won’t bet on productivity yet to ensure inflation control – MNI Webcast
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WASHINGTON, Jan 13 (Reuters) – St. Louis Fed president Alberto Musalem said on Tuesday that while he was hopeful U.S. productivity is rising, the Fed should not yet bet on it to return inflation to 2%, and added there was no “near term” reason to cut interest rates further with inflation still above target.
“I am hopeful that we are probably in a higher productivity regime. But I think it’s too early to call that, and it’s certainly too early to outsource our job of bringing inflation back towards 2%,” Musalem said on an MNI Webcast. “I see little reason for near term further easing of policy.”
(Reporting by Howard Schneider; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama )