More progress in deflation remains to be seen
Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee welcomed the drop in inflation in April but said deflation progress needs to be firmer.
Speaking Wednesday after the CPI excluding food and energy prices fell for the first time in six months, Goolsbee expected more such good data to come before making a decision to cut interest rates.
“Inflation data improved quite a bit compared to what we expected, but still higher than where it was in the second half of last year,” Goolsbee said in an interview on the radio show Marketplace. “Because So, more progress still needs to be recorded in the deflation process.”
The Chicago Fed president, who is not voting on policy this year, called the deflationary path bumpy and pointed to housing inflation as a key indicator he is watching.
Fed officials have downgraded expectations for a first rate cut, stressing the need to keep rates high for longer amid persistent inflation.