Fed's Goolsbee: if tariffs are avoided, policy rate can come down
May 29 (Reuters) - Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Austan Goolsbee on Thursday said he believes that if big tariffs could be avoided, either through trade deals or otherwise, the central bank could likely cut interest rates, given the underlying strength of the economy and the direction of inflation.
Goolsbee did not comment directly on a ruling Wednesday by a US trade court that blocked many of the tariffs put on by the Trump administration, including the aggressive "Liberation Day" levies from April 2. Before that date, Goolsbee said, the labor market was stable and inflation was heading towards the Fed's 2% goal, conditions that would allow the Fed to bring the policy rate down to its long-term settling point, well below the current 4.25%-4.5% rate.
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