U.S. Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller speaks at the C. Peter McCollough International Economic Series at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, USA, on Thursday, October 16, 2025.
Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Federal Reserve President Christopher Waller said on Monday that he is increasingly concerned about the sharp slowdown in the labor market and employment and expressed support for further interest rate cuts at the Fed’s December meeting.
As divisions at the Fed deepen, Waller’s comments put him squarely in the camp of those who want monetary easing to avoid further risks to the jobs situation. Other countries, including several regional presidents, have expressed opposition in recent days to further rate cuts, seeing inflation as a persistent economic threat that could be reignited by further easing.
“I’m not worried about accelerating inflation or a significant rise in inflation expectations,” Waller said in prepared remarks to a group of economists in London. “My focus is on the labor market, and after months of labor market weakness, the September jobs report later this week and other indicators in the coming weeks are unlikely to change my view that further rate cuts are necessary.”
The Federal Open Market Committee, which will decide the next interest rate setting, will meet on December 9-10. The market is divided on which way the committee will go after consecutive quarterly interest rate cuts (25 basis points) at its September and October meetings.
Earlier Monday, Vice Chairman Philip Jefferson was less forthcoming about the next meeting, saying only that the current economic climate requires policymakers to “move slowly” as they consider additional cuts. Boston Fed President Susan Collins said Wednesday that there are “high hurdles” for further easing.
Waller made it clear he supports another move at the quarter point. Waller and Gov. Stephen Millan, a fellow appointee of President Donald Trump, had supported the half-point move in two previous meetings.
Waller, who has spoken out repeatedly in recent months about lowering his approval ratings, updated his comments to reflect recent developments. While there was no government data available during the recently ended government shutdown, policymakers cited a variety of other data points indicating weak labor market demand and pressure on consumers.
At the same time, he said price statistics show that tariffs will have no long-term impact on inflation. Cutting interest rates again would be an exercise in “risk management” that Chairman Jerome Powell also uses.
“We are concerned that restrictive monetary policy is weighing on the economy, particularly how it is impacting low- and moderate-income consumers,” Waller said. “December’s rate cut would provide additional insurance against accelerating labor market weakness and move policy toward a more neutral setting.”
Waller rejected claims that the Fed is “acting blind” on policy because the government shutdown has halted nearly all official government economic indicators.
“Despite the government shutdown, there is a wealth of private sector and some public sector data that provides an incomplete but fully viable picture of the U.S. economy,” he said.
