Fed's Hammack tells CNBC that September jobs data is 'a bit stale'

By Michael S. Derby

Nov 20 (Reuters) -

Cleveland Federal Reserve President Beth Hammack downplayed the impact of September hiring data released on Thursday, as she once again said U.S. monetary policy needs to be positioned to lower persistently high inflation levels. Hammack said on CNBC that the jobs data, which was delayed due to the recent U.S. government shutdown, "is a bit stale, it's a bit dated." She added that the data "does look like it was a mixed report, but it's in line with my expectation that we would see some further softening in the jobs market."

The Cleveland Fed chief, who opposed the U.S. central bank's most recent interest rate cut, continues to believe lowering the cost of short-term borrowing is not a good idea because of where inflation stands. Financial markets now expect the Fed to hold rates steady at its December 9-10 meeting, as the central bank grapples with a deep divide within its policymaking committee.

"On the prices side, we see inflation that's still too high, and some of the recent indicators that we've seen, albeit somewhat stale, have been trending in the wrong direction," Hammack told CNBC. "And so to me, I think we need to continue to keep policy somewhat restrictive to bring inflation back down to target," she said.

But she also acknowledged tough conditions in the job market. Referring to her travels in her Fed district, Hammack said "what we hear from the workers is that they're holding on to their jobs for dear life, if they have them," in a low-hiring, low-firing environment. (Reporting by Michael S. Derby; Editing by Paul Simao)