Comments by Chicago Fed's Evans at an event.....>

FED: Comments by Chicago Fed's Evans at an event in Illinois re the economy,

unemployment, and the general outlook on rates a little hawkish given his

assumed dovish stance (MNI's Hawk-Dove matrix assesses him as the 3rd most

dovish FOMC member, behind Bullard and Kashkari).

- Main takeaway - said that he backed the Fed`s cuts, but `seems like mid-cycle

adjustment`, and "I think we're pretty well positioned now to see how things

play out from here."

- Said Fed needs to be `on guard` but waiting for risks to materialize.

- Says wages on a good growth path, not 'outrageously strong'.

- Sounds similar notes to previous comments on 'a lot of uncertainty due to

trade', 'U.S. outlook still good, global economy slowing.'

- In other words, Evan`s baseline on outlook fairly constructive: only likely to

support much further easing if downside risks materialise.

- Also said the Repo issue could be a sign the Fed balance sheet is `tighter

than anticipated`.

- Little market reaction to Evans` comments, however.