(Bloomberg). James Bullard of Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis stated that the U.S. must tighten its monetary policy quickly in order to reduce inflationary pressures already high. This is a repeat of his request for interest rates above 3%.

“The Fed needs to move aggressively to keep inflation under control,” Bullard said in an interview Tuesday on Bloomberg Television with Michael McKee. “We need to get to neutral at least so we’re not putting upward pressure on inflation during this period when we have much higher inflation than we’re used to in the U.S.”

The neutral rate represents the level of inflation that does not stimulate nor inhibit it.

The Federal Open Market Committee last week voted 8-1 to raise rates by a quarter percentage point for the first time since 2018, with Bullard dissenting in favor of a half-point hike and commencing the roll-off of the central bank’s nearly $9 trillion balance sheet. Chairman Jerome Powell stated Monday that Powell and his co-workers were ready to increase rates by half point during their May 3-4 meeting, if necessary to control the highest inflation for 40 years.

Asked how quickly the Fed should move, Bullard said “faster is better,” adding that “the 1994 tightening cycle or removal of accommodation cycle is probably the best analogy here.”

©2022 Bloomberg L.P.