Fed's Daly says central bank was right to hold rates steady at July policy meeting

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President Mary Daly said on Wednesday she was “completely supportive” of the decision last week to hold interest rates steady as the central bank gathers more data about how it should respond to inflation that is well above the 2% target.

“We have a lot of information we need to collect” before the September monetary policy meeting to determine whether inflation is being driven by supply shocks that will wane over time, or whether a longer lasting inflation situation is forming, Daly said in an appearance before an economics conference.

The Fed should be “vigilant to watch the information as it comes in, but be very prepared to take action” if needed, Daly said.