Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert Kaplan said on Wednesday he cut his forecast for U.S. GDP growth this year due to the resurgence of COVID-19, but reiterated his support for starting to taper the Fed’s asset purchases in October as long as there is no fundamental change to the outlook. “Fear of infection is having an impact,” Kaplan said at a Dallas Fed Town Hall, forecasting slower hiring in September and a dent to demand in the third quarter, but no “prolonged” effect. This year the U.S. economy will probably grow 6%, he said, shy of the 6.5% pace he earlier forecast but so far not fundamentally different.
The U.S. Federal Reserve should go forward with a plan to trim its massive pandemic stimulus programme despite a slowdown in U.S. jobs growth last month, said James Bullard, the president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank
“There is plenty of demand for workers and there are more job openings than there are unemployed workers,” Bullard said.