Miran wanted a bigger cut and Schmid voted for no easing at all

There were two dissenters from the Fed’s decision Lower the federal funds rate By a quarter of a percentage point, today, Wednesday, in two different directions.

Federal Reserve Governor Steven Meiran instead called for a half-point cut, while Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid voted for no cut.

“The decision to cut interest rates by 25 basis points in October was never in doubt, but the unexpected hawkish opposition from the regional Fed head highlights that future moves are becoming more controversial,” said Michael Pearce, deputy chief US economist at Oxford Economics. “We expect the Fed to slow the pace of cuts from here.”

Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, called two opponents “unusual,” especially since one wanted a deeper cut and the other wanted no change.

“[Fed Chair Jerome] “Powell will have to use all his leadership skills to keep Fed leaders moving in the same direction in the coming months,” she added.

However, Powell downplayed any potential disagreement, saying there would be expected to be a range of views across the committee on what should be done and how quickly.

“All of these people take their jobs seriously, work hard at this and just want to do what’s right for the American people, but they have different views on this, and it’s an honor to work among people who care that much,” Powell said in the press conference that followed the meeting.

This is the second opposition in a row to Miran, who was the only dissenter During the September meeting When he called for a half-point interest rate cut there as well. Instead, the central bank cut the federal funds rate by 25 basis points, or a quarter of a percentage point.

Miran joined the Fed in September after being appointed by the president Donald Trump Confirmed by the Senate. Schmid voted for a rate cut in September, though Expressing some doubt about cutting interest rates during an interview with CNBC in late August.