New York Federal Reserve President John Williams signaled Wednesday that he is open to raising interest rates at the Federal Open Market Committee's September 15-16 meeting, a shift from his previous stance favoring a hold on rates.
"There's no clear signs right now whether monetary policy currently is sufficient to make sure we bring inflation back to target in the next year or two, or whether you need to see further action to do that," Williams said in a "Squawk Box" appearance on CNBC, speaking with anchor Steve Liesman from the New York Fed's headquarters. He added that recent inflation data had been "encouraging" but that policymakers needed to consider a fuller picture of incoming information. He rounded out the thought by saying, "We've got to get a full picture and look at all the different pieces of information we have."
Williams, who holds a permanent seat on the FOMC, had until recently been among the Fed's most vocal defenders of keeping rates steady, according to MarketWatch. His comments Wednesday represented a notable shift in tone ahead of what markets consider a pivotal policy decision.
Williams also addressed the recent rise in Treasury yields, attributing it to economic strength rather than market dysfunction. "What's driving it, in large part, is really a strong U.S. economy and a strong economic outlook fueled by big investments in AI and data centers and technology in general," he said. He described inflation expectations as "well anchored" despite price pressures tied to tariffs and the Iran war.
Markets were pricing in roughly a two-in-three chance of a rate hike at the September meeting as of Wednesday morning, per CME Group figures cited by CNBC.
#wednesday #open
"There's no clear signs right now whether monetary policy currently is sufficient to make sure we bring inflation back to target in the next year or two, or whether you need to see further action to do that," Williams said in a "Squawk Box" appearance on CNBC, speaking with anchor Steve Liesman from the New York Fed's headquarters. He added that recent inflation data had been "encouraging" but that policymakers needed to consider a fuller picture of incoming information. He rounded out the thought by saying, "We've got to get a full picture and look at all the different pieces of information we have."
Williams, who holds a permanent seat on the FOMC, had until recently been among the Fed's most vocal defenders of keeping rates steady, according to MarketWatch. His comments Wednesday represented a notable shift in tone ahead of what markets consider a pivotal policy decision.
Williams also addressed the recent rise in Treasury yields, attributing it to economic strength rather than market dysfunction. "What's driving it, in large part, is really a strong U.S. economy and a strong economic outlook fueled by big investments in AI and data centers and technology in general," he said. He described inflation expectations as "well anchored" despite price pressures tied to tariffs and the Iran war.
Markets were pricing in roughly a two-in-three chance of a rate hike at the September meeting as of Wednesday morning, per CME Group figures cited by CNBC.
#wednesday #open
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