Michelle Bowman, the vice chair for supervision of the Federal Reserve (Fed), the Central Bank of the United States, said on the 9th (local time) that it is necessary to lower the benchmark interest rate at each of the remaining three monetary policy meetings this year.
On that day, Bowman attended an event hosted by the Kansas Bankers Association in Colorado, where she noted, "In my previous economic forecast, I anticipated three rate cuts this year, and the recent labor market indicators reinforce my view."
The employment report for July, released on the 1st, showed that the U.S. labor market had significantly contracted. In July, non-farm jobs in the United States increased by 73,000 compared to the previous month, falling short of the market forecast of 100,000 compiled by Dow Jones, and the job growth for May and June was revised down by a total of 258,000 from previous announcements.
Bowman stated, "The price increases due to tariffs are likely to be one-time effects, and once these effects dissipate, I believe inflation will return to 2%." She added, "There is a time lag for currency policy changes to impact the economy, so delayed actions could pose risks of worsening labor market conditions and additional slowing of growth."
Previously, Bowman expressed a dissenting opinion on rate cuts against the majority opinion when the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decided to keep the benchmark interest rate at 4.25 to 4.50% for the fifth consecutive time on the 30th of last month. It was the first time since 1993 that two Federal Reserve governors expressed opposing views simultaneously.