Federal Reserve Governor Milan: Inclined towards a 50 basis point rate cut; believes monetary policy should not overemphasize the strength of financial markets.

Federal Reserve Governor Smirnov stated that overemphasizing the strength of the stock market and corporate credit markets is inappropriate when assessing monetary policy. He believes that current monetary policy remains too tight and increases the risk of economic downturn. In an interview, Smirnov said, "Financial markets are driven by many factors, not just monetary policy." He used this to explain why, in last week's vote on a first-quarter rate cut, he opposed a 25 basis point cut and favored a 50 basis point cut. He pointed out that factors such as rising stock prices and narrowing corporate credit spreads "do not necessarily tell you the stance of monetary policy" when interest rate-sensitive sectors such as the housing market are performing poorly and some private credit markets are under pressure. (Jinshi)