--- title: "Federal Reserve Governor Barr: Inflation rate may still be at 3%, need to be cautious on interest rate cuts" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/266778116.md" description: "Federal Reserve Governor Barr stated that the current inflation rate is about 3%, higher than the target of 2%, so caution is needed when considering interest rate cuts. Barr pointed out at an event in Washington that monetary policy must be careful to achieve a balance in its dual mandate. Barr may cast a key vote at the Federal Reserve's policy meeting in December. The latest employment data shows that the labor market is tending towards balance, with 119,000 new jobs added in September and the unemployment rate rising to 4.4%. Investors expect the probability of a rate cut in December to be around 40%" datetime: "2025-11-20T15:40:51.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/266778116.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/266778116.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/266778116.md) --- > Supported Languages: [简体中文](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/266778116.md) | [繁體中文](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/266778116.md) # Federal Reserve Governor Barr: Inflation rate may still be at 3%, need to be cautious on interest rate cuts Federal Reserve Governor Barr stated that the central bank needs to remain cautious when considering further interest rate cuts, as inflation is still one percentage point above the target. Barr said at an event in Washington on Thursday, "I am concerned that the inflation rate is still around 3%, while our target is 2%. The Federal Reserve is committed to achieving this target. Therefore, we must be careful and prudent in formulating monetary policy now to ensure a balance in achieving our dual mandate." Barr may cast a key vote at the Federal Reserve's policy meeting on December 9-10. Several officials have expressed support or opposition to a third consecutive rate cut, adding uncertainty to the meeting's outcome. After the latest employment data was released on Thursday morning, Barr stated that he believes the labor market "is cooling down," with new job additions approaching a level that maintains stable unemployment. He said, "Overall, the labor market is in a relatively balanced state, but this balance is achieved on the basis of a relatively low number of net new jobs." According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 119,000 new jobs were added in September, and the unemployment rate slightly rose to 4.4%. This employment report, delayed due to the government shutdown, is the last employment data that Federal Reserve officials will see before the next meeting. Based on the pricing of federal funds futures, investors currently expect a probability of about 40% for a rate cut in December ## Related News & Research - [St Louis Fed's Musalem: If you take away tariffs, you still have 2.5% inflation on 12-month basis](https://longbridge.com/en/news/281379809.md) - [Why rising oil prices could delay Fed rate cuts in 2026](https://longbridge.com/en/news/281055979.md) - [Germany's input cost inflation surges to highest since October](https://longbridge.com/en/news/281326966.md) - [Scott Bessent delivers stark message to US workers amid massive economic shift. Here's the skill he says they need in 2026 (and beyond)](https://longbridge.com/en/news/281427154.md) - [09:18 ETRevelio Public Labor Statistics Reports 19.4k U.S. Jobs Gained in March](https://longbridge.com/en/news/281531820.md)