On July 16, Nick Timiraos, the "Fed's sounding board," wrote that Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's latest statement that the recent slowdown in inflation and economic activity was broadly in line with the Fed's expectations, but that he still declined to say whether that warranted a rate cut at the Fed's policy meeting later this month. The inflation report released last week showed a general improvement in the economy, prompting some private analysts to wonder if the Fed needs to wait until September to cut rates.