Fed's Clarida Says Central Bank Will 'Act as Appropriate' to Sustain Growth
October 18 2019 - 12:00PM
Dow Jones News
By Nick Timiraos
Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Richard Clarida said the central
bank's rate cuts in July and September provided a "somewhat more
accommodative policy" in response to rising risks to growth, and
the Fed would approach future policy decisions on a
meeting-by-meeting basis.
Mr. Clarida, speaking in Boston on Friday, was among the final
central bank speakers to make public comments ahead of the Fed's
customary premeeting quiet period that begins on Saturday.
Investors in interest-rate futures markets have maintained
strong expectations of a third interest-rate cut at the
rate-setting committee's Oct. 29-30 policy meeting, in part because
Fed officials have done little to dispel those expectations.
"Monetary policy is not on a preset course, and the committee
will proceed on a meeting-by-meeting basis to assess the economic
outlook as well as the risks to the outlook," Mr. Clarida said in
prepared remarks. "It will act as appropriate to sustain growth, a
strong labor market, and a return of inflation to our symmetric 2%
objective."
Mr. Clarida described the baseline economic outlook for the
economy as a favorable one. "The U.S. economy is in a good place,"
he said, but he noted that it confronts "some evident risks,"
including a drop in business investment, weaker manufacturing
activity, and global disinflationary pressures.
Mr. Clarida said there was no evidence that stronger labor
markets were fueling excessive pressures on U.S. inflation, which
"remains muted," he said.
Write to Nick Timiraos at nick.timiraos@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 18, 2019 11:45 ET (15:45 GMT)
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