Source: Jin10 Data

William, the 'third hand' of the Federal Reserve and the president of the New York Federal Reserve, said on Tuesday that the U.S. economy is 'developing in the right direction,' but he refused to reveal when he would support interest rate cuts.

When asked whether the Fed would meet market expectations for a rate cut in September, Williams said, 'I won't predict' the specific path of policy. He stressed that any decision this year on the timing and degree of monetary policy easing will be based on upcoming economic data and added, 'I think things are heading in the right direction,' and the Fed will eventually implement an accommodative policy. He said recent inflation data was encouraging, and he expected price pressures to continue to ease.

He emphasized that any decision this year on the timing and degree of monetary policy easing related to the relaxation of monetary policy will depend on upcoming economic data and added that 'I think things are heading in the right direction,' and the Fed will eventually implement an accommodative policy. He said recent inflation data was encouraging and he expected price pressures to continue to ease.

Williams said in an interview with Fox Business Channel on Tuesday: 'There are very good signs that supply and demand are moving towards balance. I do see the anti-inflation process continuing, and I expect inflation to continue to decline in the second half of this year and next year.'

This is Williams' first public speech since the Fed policy meeting last week. According to last week's forecast, Fed officials lowered their expectations for rate cuts this year, with the median forecast showing that there will only be one rate cut this year. Policymakers also kept the benchmark interest rate within the target range of 5.25% to 5.5% set in July last year, the highest level in 20 years.

Williams said that the Fed's 'primary task is to ensure that the inflation rate returns to 2%' and he did not think the Fed would tolerate an inflation rate of around 3%.

Williams said last month that there was 'ample evidence' that the Fed's current policy was putting pressure on the economy and he expected inflation to continue to cool in the second half of this year.

He also participated in a hotly debated Wall Street debate that recent data may exaggerate strong job growth in the labor market. Williams said that overall, the data 'convincingly tells me that our labor market is still very strong, but recruitment has slowed.'

Williams said that although household surveys showed signs of softness in employment, employment data in business surveys was still very strong. He acknowledged that some parts of the employment data may have been 'exaggerated' and added that the Fed will learn more about the situation in the coming months.

In addition, Williams avoided the question of whether the Fed could cut rates this fall to avoid political bias, saying, 'The most important thing is to make the right decision, not to ignore political factors.'

Editor/tolk