Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee, in an interview with Fox News overnight, said that investors might be “a little ahead of themselves” with their “euphoria” as stock markets surged to record highs following Fed’s announcement last week.

Goolsbee did acknowledge that if inflation continues its downward trend towards target, Fed might reassess its restrictive stance. “If inflation continues to come down to target, then the Fed can reconsider how restrictive it wants to be,” he stated.

However, Goolsbee was clear in emphasizing Fed’s independence, asserting that the central bank will not be “bullied” by market pressures.

Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin, in an interview with Yahoo Finance, acknowledged that the Fed is making “good progress” in its efforts to bring down inflation.

However, he pointed out that the economic data has been somewhat erratic, emphasizing his desire for “consistency” and “breadth” in the inflation metrics. He explained that he is looking for “consistency around our target and a broad-based disinflationary set of results.”

On the topic of interest rate cuts, Barkin’s stance was cautious and data-dependent. He suggested that a response from Fed would be appropriate if inflation trends downwards as hoped. However, he stressed the unpredictability of economic data

“If you’re going to assume that inflation comes down nicely, then, of course, we’d respond appropriately. You know, I don’t assume what the data is going to do. We’ll see what happens,” he said.

Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic emphasized a lack of urgency in cutting interest rates, projecting potential rate reductions only in the second half of 2024.

In an event overnight, Bostic expressed his view that inflation is likely to decrease gradually over the next six months. This outlook underpins his stance that there is no immediate need to deviate from the current restrictive monetary policy.

“For me, I’m thinking inflation is going to come down relatively slowly in the next six months, which means there’s not going to be urgency for us to pull off our restrictive stance,” he stated.

Bostic anticipates that Fed might implement two rate cuts in the latter half of 2024. However, he clarified, “It is not like there has been an active discussion on this.”

Highlighting the prevailing economic uncertainties, Bostic advocated for a “cautious but resolute” approach. This strategy involves a resistance to reacting hastily to individual data points and instead focuses on making sure “the trends are really trends.”

San Francisco Fed Bank President Mary Daly, in a Wall Street Journal interview yesterday, suggested that it might be appropriate for policymakers to start considering rate cuts in 2024, especially considering the easing of inflation this year. However, she also cautioned that it is premature to speculate on the exact timing of these rate reductions.

Daly emphasized the delicate balancing act Fed faces: the need to achieve price stability while minimizing job losses. Fed’s goal is to bring inflation down to its 2% target, but Daly highlighted the importance of doing so gently, “with as few disruptions to the labor market as possible.”

Another key point from Daly’s interview concerns the real borrowing costs for households and businesses. With inflation showing a downward trend, maintaining the current rate could inadvertently increase these costs. Daly conveyed her wariness that “we could overtighten quite easily, and so that’s what I’m mindful of”.

Aligning with the broader perspective of Fed policymakers, Daly’s views resonate with the median projections released last week. These projections suggest a majority of the 19 Fed policymakers anticipate a 75 basis-point reduction from the current target range of 5.25%-5.50% for the policy rate, aiming to bring inflation down to about 2.4% by the year’s end.