Gold soars to record high over $3,900/oz amid yen slump, US rate cut bets
Investing.com -- Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran advocated for a quicker pace of monetary policy easing during a Bloomberg television interview on Friday, stating that current interest rates are too high given recent economic changes.
"My view is that if policy is out of whack, you should adjust it at a reasonably brisk pace," Miran said. He warned that while maintaining current rates isn’t an immediate crisis, "if you keep it there for an extra year, yeah, I think you have problems on your hands."
Miran emphasized that Fed policy should be forward-looking rather than relying on backward-looking data, which he described as "misguided." He noted that the neutral interest rate "has come down to bottom end of estimates," suggesting that even with seemingly loose financial conditions, monetary policy remains tight.
The Fed governor expressed expectations for "significant disinflation to services inflation" related to population shifts, particularly in housing costs. He stated that shelter inflation is expected to ease going forward, though he would update his policy view if this did not materialize.
Regarding tariffs, Miran said he was "not seeing broad based inflation increase" from them, adding that Americans can manage tariff impacts through demand elasticity and that negative effects "fall on foreigners."
Miran also addressed his role at the Fed, saying part of his job is to "bring out of consensus ideas" and that he will "speak my mind if I believe the ideas are right." He clarified that his position on rates isn’t extreme, but rather he "just wants to get to neutral faster."
When asked about potential leadership changes, Miran stated he "has not had an interview for Fed chair" and that former President Trump "has never asked me to take a specific policy action."
The governor expressed hope that the Fed would have necessary data by the next Federal Open Market Committee meeting, noting that "access to data is important to making policy."