MNI BRIEF: Fed's Goolsbee Says June Rate Hold Was Close Call

Holding off raising the Fed's benchmark interest rate last week was a "close call" but it's appropriate to wait to judge how much further to tighten, Chicago President Austan Goolsbee said Wednesday, adding he hasn't yet made a decision about a July hike.

"We're in this weird, foggy environment where it's hard to figure out where the road is, and I felt like a reconnaissance mission is perfectly appropriate thing to do after you've had 10 raises in a row," he told a Wall Street Journal forum. "It takes some time for that to work its way through the economy, and just trying to figure out whether we've done enough, how much more needs to be done."

"Over the next several months, we're going to get some markers" of whether the job market and inflation are cooling enough, he said. "If you don't see progress, that is an answer. If you do see progress, that is also an answer." (See: MNI INTERVIEW: Policy Lags Argue For Fed Pause, Blinder Says)