Speaking in NY. She seems happy.
She adds:
- fundamentals of the US economy is strong
- Tariffs pose a potential risk to the economy
- there are no signs of a pending US recession
- a prolonged market downturn, build up in risks would affect US economic data
- not adjusting policy stance based on recent market drop
- inflation expectations have been very stable
- recent US inflation readings pretty good
- sees upside and downside risks to prices. X patients have been very stable
- labor market is pretty strong; could bring prices up
- business contacts in her district say they can raise prices
- getting closer to neutral policy stance; that no more sensitive the data
- forecast for Fed funds rate in the long run is 3%
Mester is considered more of a hawk on the Federal Reserve Board. She is the president of the Cleveland Fed and is a voting member in 2018.
She (like Powell) definitely seems to enjoy raising rates in the picture (see earlier post). She was nominated by Pres. Obama and has been Pres of the Cleveland Fed since June 2014.
