Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari told CNBC on Monday that the tepid economic growth in the U.S. is related to an aging population, lack of technological innovation and "psychological scarring coming out of the crisis," rather than monetary policy.
"We are seeing trends all around the world, low interest rates, low inflation, sluggish recovery amongst virtually all the advanced economies, and I am asking like many people are, why is that? What is the explanation?" said the Republican Fed governor. "The rule of thumb was, the deeper the recession, the stronger the recovery; yet we had the weakest recovery since the Great Depression."
Kashkari, a nonvoting member of the Fed's policymaking committee, believes the explanation for sluggish economic growth goes beyond the Fed's actions, and instead pertains to underlying issues such as a rapidly aging workforce.
"Demographics is not a monetary policy problem. We are not going to solve demographic problems with low interest rates," he said.
In this extensive interview ahead of the Fed's September policy meeting next week, Kashkari also discusses:
- Whether the upcoming U.S. election influences the Fed's policies
- His views on negative interest rates and inflation
- Immigration reform and why it could strengthen the U.S. workforce
Only PRO subscribers have access to the full interview, which was originally broadcast on "Squawk Box."
