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Trump's impeachment inquiry not problem for Fed: Official

This article is more than 12 months old

St Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard said on Wednesday he does not expect the impeachment inquiry into US President Donald Trump to affect how the Fed conducts monetary policy.

Mr Bullard said in an interview with CNBC that Fed officials are used to dealing with political uncertainty as a backdrop to policy deliberations. "This doesn't sound all that different to me," he said.

Mr Bullard, who dissented on the Fed's rate reduction last week because he favoured a deeper cut, also reiterated his view that the Fed's target rate should be reduced by an additional quarter of a percentage point by the end of this year.

"We've made a big move," he said. "I think we could do a little bit more."

Still, he said he does not want to make a judgment before the next meeting and that his decision will depend on economic data.

In response to a question about Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren's view that low rates could encourage people and businesses to take excessive risk, Mr Bullard said the risks seen today are not on the same magnitude as the risks encountered in the late 1990s and mid 2000s. - REUTERS

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