Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan said Dec. 1 that he was worried about the yield curve continuing to flatten and that rate hikes need to be done "patiently and gradually," according to Reuters.
"This is one of several reasons why I've said any removal of accommodation is going to have to be done patiently and gradually, and this will be one of the factors I'll be taking into account," he told reporters after an event in McAllen, Texas.
Kaplan said the Federal Open Market Committee should be "taking one more step in the near future in raising rates," given that the labor market is strong and inflation is expected to pick up.
He is a voting member this year on the FOMC, which will meet Dec. 12-13 and is expected to raise the federal funds rate for the third time this year.
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said Dec. 1 that policymakers needed to be cautious on future rate hikes because such increases could lead to an inversion of the yield curve, which would likely foretell a recession.
