Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) shares picked up steam Monday after a Fed official gave investors exactly what they wanted to hear: another rate cut is probably coming.

Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said he's backing another interest rate reduction when the central bank meets in December. His reasoning? The labor market is showing real signs of strain, with hiring slowing down noticeably. Waller indicated that months of deteriorating conditions make it pretty unlikely that any new data before the meeting would shift his view that more easing is necessary.

Here's where it gets interesting. Waller's position puts him squarely in the camp of Fed officials pushing for continued easing, while others have recently pumped the brakes over worries that inflation could heat back up. But Waller isn't losing sleep over inflation. He said he's not concerned about prices accelerating or inflation expectations climbing significantly. He even downplayed tariff concerns, arguing they're unlikely to create long-term pressure on price levels.

Waller signaled he'd support another quarter-point cut, framing it as "risk management" given weakening labor demand and mounting pressure on consumers. He pointed out that restrictive policy is hitting lower- and middle-income consumers particularly hard, and argued that an additional cut would nudge policy closer to neutral territory.

The Federal Open Market Committee meets December 9-10, so we won't have to wait long to see how this plays out.

For Microsoft and other software stocks, Waller's comments were good news. Lower rates generally make long-term growth names more appealing, and investors responded by rotating back into large-cap tech. It's a familiar pattern: easier monetary policy expectations arrive, and suddenly those high-flying tech stocks look attractive again.

Price Action: Microsoft shares closed Monday up 0.40% at $424.