Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Wednesday that the ongoing progress of inflation is “not guaranteed,” although the central bank still expects to lower its benchmark interest rate this year.
“If the economy evolves as expected, it will likely be appropriate to begin easing monetary policy at some point this year,” Powell stated in remarks prepared for delivery to the House Financial Services Committee, as U.S. lawmakers gear up to face voters concerned about inflation in a year of tight presidential elections.
“However, the economic outlook is uncertain, and the continued progress toward our 2% inflation target is not assured,” Powell added, noting both the risk of cutting interest rates too early and allowing inflation to reaccelerate, and the risk of keeping monetary policy too tight for too long and harming an ongoing economic expansion that has maintained an unemployment rate below 4% for two years.