US GDP growth could exceed 2.5%, Chicago Fed's Evans says
The head of the US central bank of Chicago sounded a confident note on the prospects for the US economy.
Speaking in Wisconsin, Charles Evans, who was not a vote-wielding member of the Federal Open Market Committee in 2020, said that the country's economy might expand at a pace of between 2.0-2.5%, adding that faster growth was possible.
A preliminary trade deal that was set to be signed with China on 15 January could stabilize economic uncertainty and the uncertainties around Iran appeared to be evolving in a controlled fashion.
Regarding inflation, he predicted that it would pick up to a 1.9% pace over the course of 2020, which would be close to the monetary authority's 2.0% target and at their current setting interest rates positioned the US well to hit that target.
And although he expected US job growth to slow over time, the fundamentals of the US economy were "quite good", he said.
The central banker also indicated that he was "pretty comfortable" with the then current stance of monetary policy.