Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic told CNBC on Monday that he currently prefers only one rate cut this year as the central bank tries to balance potential upward pressures on inflation with worries of a recession.
The Federal Reserve released projections in March that pointed toward two quarter-point rate reductions in 2025. However, Bostic said Monday that the tariffs have been larger than the central bank expected at the start of the year.
“For me right now, I’m expecting it’s going to take a bit longer for that to sort out. … I’m leaning much more into one cut this year, because I think it will take time, and then we’ll sort of have to see,” Bostic said on “Squawk Box.”
The Fed has a dual mandate to support maximum employment and stable prices. Worries about inflation flared up again last week when a consumer sentiment survey showed Americans were worried about the potential of tariffs to push inflation higher. When asked about which side of the mandate he is more worried about, Bostick focused on a potential rise in prices.
“I worry a lot about the inflation side, and mainly because we’re seeing expectations move in a troublesome way. … That will make our job harder,” he said.
Bostic is not currently a voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee, which sets interest rate policy.
The tariff picture has changed several times since President Donald Trump took office in January. The president unveiled tariffs on nearly every trading partner on April 2, before announcing a 90-day pause that set the levy on most countries at 10%. The U.S. has also reached a separate 90-day truce with China, though tariffs are still higher than they were before Trump took office.
Bostic said Monday that even the reduced tariffs are “definitely economically significant.”
