Stating that he hates to make predictions about changes in monetary policy, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari seemed to indicate Tuesday he still believes the current monetary policy is appropriate.
"We're coming up a little short on our inflation target," Kashkari said at a question and answer session livestreamed by the Fed. "There's still some slack in the labor market." He said those are the criteria used to determine whether to raise rates. He also pointed to the post he made explaining why he backed leaving rates alone at the last Federal Open Market Committee meeting.
For the past year, job creation has been at a faster pace than needed, and Kashkari said he's "cautiously optimistic there's more room to run. The headline rate doesn't tell the whole story.
With the surge in job growth, he noted, fewer workers are leaving the work force and some are being encouraged to re-enter.
As for the "Audit the Fed" proposal and the pros and cons, Kashkari said, "Not a lot of pros in it passes."
While the Fed is "keeping our eyes open for potential bubbles," Kashkari said it's nearly impossible to spot bubbles before they burst.
