Fed’s George Says Pace, Endpoint of Rate Hikes Still Matter of Debate

Fed’s George Says Pace, Endpoint of Rate Hikes Still Matter of Debate
Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Esther George addresses the National Association for Business Economics in Denver, Colo., on Oct. 6, 2019. Ann Saphir/Reuters
|Updated:

The recent easing of U.S. financial conditions, including a surge in stock prices, may have been based on an overly optimistic sense that inflation was peaking and the pace of interest rate increases was likely to slow, Kansas City Federal Reserve President Esther George said on Thursday.

In comments to a Kansas City economic group, George said the pace and ultimate level of future rate hikes remained a matter of debate. “To know where that stopping point is ... we are going to have to be completely convinced that (inflation) number is coming down,” she said.