By Michael S. Derby
NEW YORK (Reuters) -Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said on Thursday he is unlikely to support a rate cut at the Fed’s upcoming policy meeting, although he expects cuts later in the year remain possible if inflation pressures continue to abate.
In discounting an easing at March 18-19 Federal Open Market Committee, Waller indicated he simply won’t have the inflation data in hand to know whether cutting what’s now a 4.25% to 4.5% federal funds rate range is justified, especially amid the heavy uncertainty created by President Donald Trump’s trade agenda.
“I want to see what happens with the February inflation data. Want to see a little bit more with what happens with tariff policies,” Waller said at a Wall Street Journal event.
“If you think it’s moving backwards target, you can start lowering rates, I wouldn’t say, at the next meeting,” but a gathering after that could justify an easing in monetary policy that at current levels remains restrictive of growth, the Fed official said.
Waller’s comments come as anxiety over the economic outlook is mounting, as the Trump Administration presses ahead erratically with major tariffs on America’s largest trading partners. Economists widely believe Trump’s trade levies, which function as tax increases on Americans to the extent foreign producers do not eat the higher costs, will drive inflation pressures higher over time, and could depress growth.
(Reporting by Michael S. Derby; Editing by Leslie Adler and Diane Craft)
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