Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari and Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack were two of the three dissenters to the Fed statement in a rare move.
Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari and Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack were two of the three dissenters to the Fed statement in a rare move. They’re both out with their reasoning.
Kashkari: Pre-Iran: easing inflation and steady jobs pointed to gradual cuts Iran shock adds stagflation risk via oil and supply disruption Hammack: uncertainty up, inflation risks skew higher, easing bias outdated Both: hikes are back on the table if inflation persists Before the Iran conflict, the Fed’s path looked relatively clean. Inflation was trending lower, driven by cooling wages, easing housing pressures and a likely fade in tariff-driven goods inflation. The labor market was stable, if unspectacular.
In that environment, Kashkari saw policy as mildly restrictive and leaned toward eventual cuts. That framework is now in question. The Iran conflict introduces a new commodity shock, with oil moves already comparable to the Ukraine war but with potentially tighter supply constraints if the Strait of Hormuz remains disrupted.