Aug 23 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve is on the cusp of being in a position to start lowering its benchmark interest rate, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said on Friday.
"We are close...the numbers are starting to move in a direction which suggest that our policy has had its effect and we can start the pathway back to a normal policy posture," Bostic said in an interview with broadcaster CNBC.
"We can't wait until inflation is at 2% itself to start moving," Bostic added. "The data has come in in a way that would suggest that it's going to be appropriate to be closer to moving (interest rates) than further and for me I just want to make sure the next couple of data points are consistent with that."
Financial markets widely expect the U.S. central bank to begin reducing borrowing costs at its next policy meeting on Sept. 17-18. Bostic has previously said he's open to supporting a rate cut then.