The shutdown is complicating the Fed’s ability to help the economy

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the Federal Reserve on September 17. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Washington —

The Federal Reserve was already facing one of its most difficult battles, steering a shifting economy through a weakening labor market and stubborn inflation. The government shutdown just made that fight even harder.

To make determinations about its rate policy and other decisions to help the economy, the Fed relies heavily on official economic statistics that are collected and disseminated by the government. The shutdown has effectively cut off access to that data — from the unemployment rate to retail sales — since the beginning of October.

With just one week to go before the Fed’s next decision on interest rates, officials are flying partially blind as they