Fed's Williams Sees 'No Urgency' for Next Hike as Barr Says Inflation Is Too High

Tuesday, 29 September 2026. Three Federal Reserve officials spoke today, and together they sketch a central bank that expects to raise rates again but is in no rush to do it in October. Separately, Cboe has locked in its most valuable product for another quarter of a century. Here is what is going on.

Williams: another hike likely, but 'no need for urgency'

New York Fed President John Williams said the Fed has time to assess data before its next move, after raising rates by 0.25 percentage point this month to 3.75%-4% (Reuters).

• 'With the policy action we took at our September meeting, there is no need for urgency,' he said in Buffalo.
• He added that 'one further upward adjustment of the federal funds target range may be appropriate late this year.'
• Williams expects inflation to end the year at around 3.5% and return to the 2% target in 2028.

Barr: 'inflation is too high'

Fed Governor Michael Barr told the Detroit Economic Club that more tightening is probably needed (Federal Reserve, Reuters via KFGO).

• 'In my base case, further policy adjustments are likely to be needed to ensure inflation comes down to target in a timely fashion,' he said.
• He noted that inflation has run above the Fed's 2% target for five and a half years.
• 'Risks to achieving our inflation target have increased, while risks to the labour market have receded,' Barr said.

Musalem warns against a Fed that goes quiet

• St Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem said too big a pullback in Fed communications could lead to higher and more volatile interest rates, in remarks for a London School of Economics event (Reuters).
• 'A central bank that does not explain how or why it makes policy decisions leaves the public to guess,' he said.
• His comments come as Chair Kevin Warsh, who took over in May, has set up a task force to rethink Fed communications and has called for 'a quieter Fed'.

Cboe locks in S&P 500 options until 2051

Cboe Global Markets and S&P Dow Jones Indices signed a 25-year extension of their exclusive licensing agreement, keeping Cboe's exclusive right to list S&P 500 index (SPX) options until 2051 (Cboe press release, Yahoo Finance).

• SPX options traded a record 970.6 million contracts in 2025, an average of 3.9 million a day and up 25% on the year before.
• Royalty terms stay the same for 2026, with new terms from 2027 that Cboe says will have a 'de minimis' impact on 2027 net revenue growth.
• The partners may also work on products such as tokenised options contracts.
• Cboe shares rose about 5% on the news (Yahoo Finance).

Sources

• Reuters - Fed's Williams sees no urgency for next Fed rate hike
• Federal Reserve - Speech by Governor Barr on economic conditions and monetary policy
• Reuters via KFGO - Fed's Barr says more rate hikes likely to be needed
• Reuters - Prospect of Fed pulling too far back on communications poses volatility risk, Musalem
• Reuters - Gold rises but strong Fed hike bets keep it near seven-week low
• Cboe - Cboe and S&P Dow Jones Indices sign 25-year extension
• Yahoo Finance - Cboe stock surges 5% on S&P 500 licensing deal extension