Federal Reserve officials debate the script for rate cuts and reopening, with inflation risk becoming the biggest obstacle

PANews February 18 News, according to Jinshi reports, Chicago Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stated on Tuesday that if inflation continues to fall back to the 2% target level, there may be more room for rate cuts this year. Powell warned that service sector inflation remains high, and he indicated that if tariff-related price increases are one-time phenomena, they could provide policymakers with room to adjust. On the same day, San Francisco Federal Reserve Chair Mary Daly said that the Federal Reserve still needs to lower inflation, and although artificial intelligence may assist in this effort, moderate or slightly restrictive policies are also crucial to achieving this goal. Federal Reserve Board Member Michael Barr’s stance on interest rates is relatively more hawkish, stating that given the ongoing risks to the U.S. inflation outlook, the next rate cut by the Federal Reserve may still be a long way off. Barr also pointed out in his speech that the labor market has stabilized, and recent data has confirmed this fact.