Thomas Parkin, a member of the Fed and president of the bank in Richmond, said he was surprised at how strong the U.S. economy had shown despite the central bank's hardline monetary policy while adding that it was uncertain how it would develop in the near future.
He also said it was still unknown for now how the Fed's balance sheet would affect the country's output.
He added that it was still too early to say what kind of monetary policy decision the central bank would make at its next meeting, but suggested it supported keeping interest rates unchanged in September.
Moreover, Parkin called the labor market "very healthy" and linked future improvements in the sector to lower inflation, and that some slowdown in the economy may be necessary to lower consumer prices.
Speaking about the potential government shutdown, he said the loss of data due to the government shutdown could lead to some complications as it would be difficult to know the economy without the data.
