The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday, Feb. 15, edition that Chicago Federal Reserve president Austan Goolsbee says the Fed's progress toward achieving its 2-per-cent inflation target would not be hindered even if prices increase more than expected in the coming months. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe reports that Mr. Goolsbee also warned that the Fed should not delay cutting interest rates for too long. Mr. Goolsbee said in prepared remarks, "I don't support waiting until inflation on a 12-month basis has already achieved 2 per cent to begin to cut rates." The Fed last month kept interest rates unchanged in the 5.25-per-cent to 5.5-per-cent target range, where it has been held since last July, as it seeks more confidence that the annual pace of price increases is on a sustainable path back down to 2 per cent. Traders now expect three quarter-point cuts by year-end, in line with what Fed policy-makers projected in December but less than the four or more rate cuts markets had priced in at the start of the week. Mr. Goolsbee said: "Let's not get amped up when you get one month of CPI that was higher than what you expected it to be. It is totally clear that inflation is coming down."