On May 28, Goolsbee, President of the Chicago Federal Reserve, reiterated that if market expectations for significant future productivity gains lead to increased investment and spending, it could trigger inflation, necessitating an increase in interest rates by the Federal Reserve. In a prepared speech at a Bank of Japan meeting in Tokyo on Thursday morning, he stated, "The expectation of income growth, much like the increase in wealth today, can drive up spending and potentially overheat the economy even before the actual productivity boom arrives. In such a case, interest rates may need to rise. The stronger the speculation about future productivity, the more likely it is that rates will need to be adjusted upward to prevent economic overheating." Goolsbee also mentioned that supply shocks could exacerbate the inflation driven by expectations of future productivity growth.
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