Fed’s Mester: Additional room on the balance sheet to take more action if needed

Further comments are crossing the wires from the Cleveland Federal Reserve (Fed) Bank President Loretta Mester, as she said that there is room on the Fed balance sheet to take more action if needed.

Additional comments

Lower inflation caused by coronavirus pandemic could lead to lower inflation expectations.

US unemployment rate is moving in the right direction but it could remain elevated for a while.

US recovery is going to be a long road back, Fed will need to have a very accommodative monetary policy for a long time.

Scenario of a vaccine in the near term and US economy recovering quickly is not one you can put a lot of weight on.

Expect periodic upswings in the virus as time goes on and that fed policymakers have to keep in mind various scenarios.

 Longstanding racial and economic disparities are getting worse because of the pandemic.

Not decided if yield curve control benefits exceed the costs.

See inflation moving lower this year.

Market reaction 

The US dollar is testing daily low just above the 97 handle against its main rivals, as markets digest the above comments.

At the press time, the US dollar index adds 0.12% to trade at 97.08.