Federal Reserve's Harker: November Inflation May Have Data Collection Distortions, Neutral Rate May Be Higher Than Widely Expected

BlockBeats News, December 21st, the Federal Reserve's Harker stated that the November inflation data was positive, possibly due to data collection distortions caused by the government shutdown in October and the first half of November, underestimating the price growth over the 12 months. Although the Labor Department reported a 2.7% year-on-year increase in the CPI in November, estimates adjusted for the difficulties in measuring the data brought it closer to the 2.9% or 3.0% level widely expected by forecasters. Furthermore, Harker's concern about cutting interest rates lies in her view that the neutral interest rate level is higher than commonly believed and that the economy itself has the momentum to maintain robust growth next year. The neutral interest rate cannot be directly observed but can be inferred from the state of the economy. (Krypton Capital)