Boston Fed President, Susan M. Collins, commented today to the US economy, tariff effects and AI. Here is the breakdown of his remarks.
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Strong equity markets boost household wealth and have buoyed consumption.
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It's still early days on how tariffs will play out.
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September FOMC meeting debate was data driven and analytic.
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AI will be disruptive, but it's hard to say how.
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AI is a general purpose technology with potential broad based impacts.
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Modestly or mildly restrictive stance is appropriate.
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Households are still worried about inflation pressures.
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Productivity growth might help limit tariff inflation.
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Concerns about the labor market fragility have increased.
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It's 'healthy' for Fed officials to show a range of views.
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We must be aware that long periods of high inflation can shift psychology.
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I expect tariffs to feed through but I see a smaller impact.
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Reading the economy is complicated right now.
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The Fed did not lay out preset path at September FOMC.
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Inflation risks remain and the Fed should focus on both sides of mandate.
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I expect hiring will pick up as firms adjust to tariffs.
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It may be appropriate to ease a bit further in 2025.
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Economic growth has been resilient amid a softer job market.
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Risk labor demand could ebb and push up unemployment.
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Inflation ‘elevated’ into next year, then should ease.
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I expect hiring to rebound once firms acclimate to tariffs.
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Baseline outlook is ‘relatively benign’.
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I can't rule out worse outlooks for inflation, job market.
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While inflation threat remains, upside risks to price pressures have waned.
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Modestly restrictive monetary policy appropriate due to inflation.
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Supported the recent Fed rate cut given risks to Fed mandates.
