Fed's Goolsbee: Hard data is pretty solid, but there is fear around tariff impact
April 1 (Reuters) - Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Austan Goolsbee on Tuesday said that while the "hard" data show the underlying U.S. economy is solid, the labor market strong, and inflation down from its peak in 2022, the imposition of a broad new set of tariffs under President Donald Trump could lead to renewed inflation or an economic slowdown.
With imports accounting for just 11% of the U.S. economy, Goolsbee said in an interview on Fox News, the impact of tariffs on overall prices could be limited.
"The fear is if it jumps out of the 11% lane," he said, either because import levies are applied to components and parts and raise the cost of production in a broad set of industries, "or people start freaking out and change their behavior; and if the consumer stops spending or businesses stop investing because they're uncertain or they're afraid where we're headed, that would be a bit of a mess."
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