Chicago Fed President Evans hinted that he may not support a rate cut in December, expressing "concern" about the inflation trend.

Chicago Fed President Charles Gullesbee hinted that he remains cautious about further interest rate cuts at the Fed's December meeting. Gullesbee said at an event in Indianapolis on Thursday, "Inflation seems to have stalled, even giving signals of moving in the wrong direction. This makes me somewhat uneasy." More and more policymakers are expressing concerns about excessive interest rate cuts while inflation remains high. Minutes from last month's meeting showed that many officials were leaning towards not cutting rates again in December. Speaking to reporters after the event in Indianapolis, Gullesbee said that in the latest forecast released by policymakers in September, he had expected a total of two interest rate cuts this year. He pointed out that economic data has not changed much since then. In the delayed release of the September jobs report on Thursday due to the federal government shutdown, even though the unemployment rate increased, the number of new hires exceeded expectations. Gullesbee said, "It shows quite a strong stability." Gullesbee added that the average monthly increase in employment over the past three months was 62,000, close to the Chicago Fed's estimate of the breakeven level. That is, the level at which job growth matches population growth. Meanwhile, inflation data released earlier in the month showed a 3% rise in the Consumer Price Index for September, still above the Fed's 2% target. Inflation had cooled earlier in the year, but new tariffs have pushed prices higher. Gullesbee said, "What still concerns me is making too many preemptive interest rate cuts before we see clear evidence of a temporary rebound in inflation." The Chicago Fed chief said his hesitation is in the short term, as he still hears from some businesses in certain industries that they plan to raise prices further. But he still believes that interest rates can fall further in the medium term. Earlier this year, before the Trump administration announced a significant increase in tariffs, Gullesbee had said that Fed officials may lower interest rates to what is known as the neutral level within the next 12-18 months, a level where interest rates neither restrain nor stimulate the economy.