Fed Governor Kugler said today that she ‘strongly supports’ the Fed's decision to cut interest rates by 50 basis points, reflecting concerns about the job market. Kugler said, ‘The job market remains resilient, but the FOMC now needs to balance its focus so that it can continue to make progress in eliminating inflation while avoiding unnecessary pain and economic weakness. I strongly support last week's decision (to cut rates by 50 basis points) and will support further rate cuts if inflation continues to make progress as I expect.’ Kugler expects inflation data to be released this Friday to show that price pressures continue to ease, with the annual rate of the PCE price index likely to be as low as 2.2 per cent in August. She said it was appropriate for the Fed to focus now on the job market, which has cooled but ‘remains resilient,’ and that the unemployment rate of 4.2 percent ‘remains quite low by historical standards.’