MNI BRIEF: Fed's Bostic: Jobless Rate Won't Rise Much More
MNI (WASHINGTON) - U.S. unemployment isn't likely to rise much further due to strength in consumption and a boost to labor supply from immigration, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic said Monday.
Fiscal largesse during the pandemic has seen labor markets and businesses rebound much more quickly than anyone had anticipated and the consumer has stayed resilient, he said.
"As long as that consumer continues, there will be demand for product. That means there'll be demand for workers and jobs, and I'm expecting we will continue to see that demand, which means that we will not need to see the unemployment rate migrate up too much further."
An influx of immigrants over the past year and a half has also expanded the labor supply, he noted. (See: MNI INTERVIEW: Fed Can Cut Gradually If Jobs Stay Strong- Kohn)