I don’t buy that last mile on inflation could take longer

Austan Goolsbee, President of the Federal Reserve (Fed) Bank of Chicago noted on Monday that progress on the final chunk of inflation heading towards the Fed’s 2% inflation target will happen faster than many expect.

Key highlights

I don’t buy that the last mile on inflation could take longer.

Market-based rents are down, but not yet reflected in the data.

I still think a soft landing is possible.

I see some warning signs from the real economy weakening.

As inflation comes down, policy gets more tight.

I think we are restrictive.

I think we should tighten by choice, not default.

Only want to stay this restrictive for as long as you have to.

If we were using the measures on housing inflation that they use in Europe, we would be at 2% already.