(Bloomberg) — Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia President Patrick Harker said monetary policy is well positioned as officials wait for more progress on inflation.
Most Read from Bloomberg
Harker said policy “remains restrictive” after three cuts last year, and he expects interest rates to continue falling in the long run. He said economic growth and production remain resilient and the labor market is in balance.
“These are reasons enough for holding the policy rate steady,” Harker said Monday in remarks prepared for an event in the Bahamas. “And while I won’t commit to a specific timetable, I remain optimistic that inflation will continue a downward path and the policy rate will be able to decline over the long run.”
Fed officials left borrowing costs unchanged last month after lowering their benchmark rate by a full percentage point in late 2024. Fed Chair Jerome Powell told lawmakers last week the Fed doesn’t need to hurry to lower rates after last year’s cuts. Policymakers want to see further progress on inflation and signaled they need more time to learn about President Donald Trump’s economic policies.
Harker greeted with skepticism data showing the consumer price index rose in January by the most since August 2023, with broad increases for a range of household expenses such as groceries, gas and housing.
“In the last decade, CPI inflation in January has surprised on the upside 9 out of 10 times,” he said. “My conjecture is that seasonal adjustments are struggling to keep up with a fast-changing economy, and we need to parse the underlying trends from the month-to-month noise.”
The Philadelphia Fed chief said he fully supported the decision to leave rates stable last month. He said rates are at a good level to bring inflation back to the central bank’s 2% target in the next two years if the economy evolves as he anticipates.
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
