Analyst: The Fed still has room to choose how much to cut interest rates

Odaily Odaily News Global X investment strategy director Scott Helfstein said that after better-than-expected U.S. retail sales in August, the Federal Reserve is likely to take note of continued strength in the consumer. He said: "With CPI inflation at 2.5%, a real interest rate of 300 basis points may be too high, but the Fed does have the freedom to act and can cut rates by 25 basis points at first or by a full 50 basis points." He said the key is that the Fed starts to cut rates, and the extent of the cuts may have little to do with the economy. He said that in recent months, retail sales growth has been slightly below the long-term average, but is still growing at a moderate pace. (Jinshi)