The Federal Reserve cut its influential interest rate for the second meeting in a row last week to boost the economy and prevent a rise in unemployment, but it may take a while for consumers to see its effects.

Fed watchers see a greater chance the central bank may skip a rate cut at its last meeting of the year in December.

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee on Friday signaled he feels the U.S. central bank will likely end up cutting the policy rate by another quarter of a percentage point this year and a full percentage point further next year,

October's Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures changes in the cost of consumer goods and services, showed that annual inflation rose by 2.6%. That's not an alarmingly high rate of inflation. It's also only a modest uptick from September's CPI reading, which measured annual inflation at 2.4%.

The U.S. central bank has lowered interest rates by 0.75 point since September.

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 0.25% on November 7. More interest rate cuts are likely through the end of 2026.

Speaking in Dallas, Powell noted the economy’s resilience, stating there’s “no hurry to lower rates.” The Fed had previously reduced rates by 50 and 25 basis points in September and November, but market odds of a December cut have now dropped to 59%.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Thursday that interest rates are still expected to decline further, but suggested they might not be that much lower over the next few months.