Fed's Fischer Says Brexit Implications Still Being Evaluated

Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer said Friday the Fed will know more by its July meeting about the implications of the so-called Brexit vote for the U.S. economy, and said those effects will be weighed against positive incoming U.S. economic data.

Mr. Fischer said the U.S. economy "has done pretty well" since the dismal May employment report showed a sharp slowdown in job growth.

"You can't make a whole story out of a month-and-a-half of data, but this is looking better than it had before," Mr. Fischer told CNBC in an interview.

"As we consider the effects of Brexit, we've got to put that effect on the U.S. together with what else is going on in the U.S. economy," he added. "And probably the other things that are going on are more important for the U.S. outlook ... than Brexit all by itself."

Asked about the fact markets aren't predicting any more Fed interest rate increases this year, Mr. Fischer said, "We'll have to wait and see how things turn out."

"I'm talking about the last few months," he said. "We've got to look over a longer horizon than that before we decide what to do about interest rates."

Mr. Fischer said officials are making their decisions one meeting at a time and are watching developments closely as they prepare for their July 26-27 meeting. "We'll see what has happened by then," he said, when asked whether the Fed may have to consider easing policy.

Fed officials will have a much better picture of the effects of the Brexit vote on financial conditions by the time they meet at the end of the month, he said.

"If you had to make this decision last Friday instead of after the events of this Friday, you would probably have a very different view of this situation," he said.

By Kate Davidson