US: Distorted Data, Inflation Signs, Fed Sweepstakes

FED'S HAMMACK SEES RATES ON HOLD FOR 'SOME PERIOD OF TIME' HAMMACK TAKES NOVEMBER'S COOLER INFLATION DATA 'WITH A GRAIN OF SALT' ... HAMMACK: POLICY MAY ALREADY BE BELOW NEUTRAL, PROVIDING STIMULUS How This Fed Hawk Views the Economy, Inflation, AI and Jobs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5I4mSQQxik&list=PLRNktCZa_EIJjZf5ZSbfUw8tKBLiPMTXk In this week’s episode of WSJ’s Take On the Week, co-host Telis Demos and guest host WSJ Chief Economics Correspondent Nick Timiraos are joined by Beth Hammack, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, to discuss the state of the U.S economy, interest rates and the central bank itself. Hammack shares her views on what she’s hearing from businesses in her district and what that could mean for consumer prices and the labor market. She emphasizes the importance of Fed independence and the chairman’s role in fusing differing viewpoints to create stable monetary policy. She also offers her perspective on the so-called neutral rate as well as artificial intelligence. At the end of the episode, Telis and Nick analyze the interview, offering their takes on the outlook for tariffs, inflation and jobs. They also break down what influence the new Fed chair will have on the central bank’s rate-setting committee and how markets may react to the nominee.