Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell suggested on Wednesday the ongoing government shutdown could make it difficult for the U.S. central bank to cut interest rates in December, saying the lack of federal data could make policymakers more cautious.
After cutting rates by 25 basis points today, the Fed will continue to assess the economy with private data sources outside the government, Powell said. But the details of that picture will remain deeply cloudy.
“If you ask me, could it affect the December meeting? I'm not saying it's going to, but, yeah, you could imagine that,” Powell said. “What do you do if you're driving in the fog? You slow down.”
