On the 11th local time, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said at the Senate Banking Committee re-election confirmation hearing that inflationary pressures in the United States may continue until mid-2022. If inflation remains high, the Fed will be ready to raise interest rates.
Powell noted that controlling price increases is critical to achieving a sustainable, strong labor market. While the labor market is recovering and the U.S. unemployment rate has fallen to 3.9% in December 2021, U.S. inflation remains “well above target” for now.
Powell emphasized that the Fed has not yet decided on a specific date for raising interest rates, and the Fed is scaling back bond purchases and ending the program in March this year, with the benchmark interest rate expected to be raised after that. Powell also said that inflation remains high both because of strong consumer demand for goods and because supply chains for goods and services have been severely disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.
[Editor in charge: Diao Yunjiao]