MNI BRIEF: Fed’s Bullard Won’t Rule Out 50BPS March Hike

St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said Thursday he does not yet have a view on how big a rate hike will be warranted at the Fed’s next meeting in March, but would not rule out a half percentage point increase in a briefing with reporters.

“What will happen now, I don’t know, I wouldn’t rule anything out for that meeting or any meeting in the future,” he said, adding that he sees fed funds peaking at 5.375%. “I do have a preference for the frontloading policy.” (See: MNI: Fed’s Peak Rate Looking Perkier As Jobs Boom-Ex-Officials)

“At the last FOMC meeting I was an advocate for a 50 basis point hike and I argued that we should get to the level of rates that the committee viewed as sufficiently restrictive as soon as we could. The committee made a different judgment,” Bullard added.