Overview
- The FOMC on Oct. 29 lowered the federal funds target to 3.75%–4.00%, marking a second 25-basis-point reduction in two months.
- Chair Jerome Powell said a December reduction is not set in stone, and market pricing now assigns roughly a 63% chance of another 25-basis-point cut.
- Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid opposed the latest cut, calling the labor market largely balanced and warning that inflation near 3% remains too high.
- Dallas Fed’s Lorie Logan and Cleveland Fed’s Beth Hammack said they would have preferred to keep rates unchanged at the latest meeting.
- Fed Governor Stephen I. Miran dissented in favor of a larger 50-basis-point cut, underscoring internal divisions over the pace of easing.