US Federal Reserve (FED) Chairman Jerome Powell appeared in front of the cameras before the CPI and PPI data to be announced this week.
Speaking at the Senate Banking Committee today, Powell made important statements.
Powell, who has taken a cautious stance so far by stating that more positive data is needed for interest rate cuts, said that more data is needed for interest rate cuts.
The highlights of Powell's speech are as follows:
“First quarter data did not support greater confidence in the path of inflation that the Fed needed to cut interest rates.
It is inappropriate for the Fed to cut rates until it gains more confidence that inflation is sustainably moving toward 2%.
High inflation is not the only risk we face.
More positive data will strengthen our confidence in inflation.
Restrictive policy helps reduce downward pressure on inflation.
Incoming good data will strengthen our confidence in the decline in inflation. The last month's data show that there is progress.
As a result, we have made significant progress towards the 2% inflation target.
Latest indicators show that the US economy continues to grow at a solid pace.
We continue to make decisions in meetings.
We know that reducing policy restrictions too soon or too much could halt or even reverse the progress we've seen in inflation.
At the same time, in light of the progress made over the past two years in both reducing inflation and cooling the labor market, high inflation is not the only risk we face.
Reducing policy restrictions too late or too little could unnecessarily weaken economic activity and employment.
We are determined to return inflation to our 2% target and firmly anchor long-term inflation expectations.
Restoring price stability is essential to achieving maximum employment and stable prices in the long term. “Our success in achieving these goals matters to all Americans.”
Bitcoin (BTC), which was traded at $57,200 before Powell's speech, rose above $58,000.
The FED President will speak to the US House of Representatives Finance Committee tomorrow.
UPDATE:
Moving on to the question and answer session, Powell responded to a question as follows:
“The economy has now reached the pre-pandemic level. However, we are still trying to create a balance. If we cut interest rates quickly, the work we have done to reduce inflation may be in vain.
I can't give any signals at this time about the timing of future Fed actions.
To cut interest rates we need better inflation data, this will boost confidence. The timing of my reductions will depend on data and what's happening in the labor market.
If the labor market weakens unexpectedly, this could also be a case of a rate cut.
We want to go back to the time of low interest rates. “Although high interest rates may strain the markets in the short term, this is what is needed in the long term.”
*This is not investment advice.