By Reuters
NEW YORK: Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic said on Thursday that he still thinks the U.S. central bank can cut its interest rate target once this year, while noting there鈥檚 a lot of uncertainty around that view as the economy undergoes considerable change.
Bostic said the forecast he offered earlier in the year of one rate cut was 鈥渒ind of still where I am,鈥 speaking before theMetro Atlanta Chamber. But he added 鈥渂ut I would just say, in today鈥檚 world, every point estimate or forecast has a wide confidence band around it, and so I鈥檓 not stuck on anything.鈥
Bostic said the current federal funds rate target range, now set at between 4.25% and 4.5%, is 鈥渕arginally restrictive鈥 amid an ongoing debate about whether that rate needs to be cut. Bostic said overall growth this year is likely to be 鈥渞elatively tepid鈥 before rebounding next year amid more clarity in the business world about the general state of U.S. economic policy. If that happens, 鈥渨e would be in a position, we being the F