"The economy is not sending any signals that we need to be in a hurry to lower rates," he said, calling the US economy's recent performance "by far the best of any major economy i

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

Ongoing economic growth, a solid job market, and inflation that remains above the 2% target means the U.S. central bank does not need to rush to lower interest rates and can deliberate carefully, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Thursday.