Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is back Wednesday on Capitol Hill, this time speaking to the Senate banking committee as part of his semiannual monetary policy testimony.
In his remarks Tuesday before the House Financial Services Committee, the central bank leader asserted that the Fed is “well positioned to wait” on interest rate policy as it watches the impact that tariffs will have on inflation.
Should the duties present a longer-lasting impact on prices, Powell said the Fed would likely be more hesitant to reduce interest rates further. However, if the rise is a one-time move, then he’d be comfortable easing later in the year, though he did not specify a meeting for when the reduction might happen.
Powell further asserted that President Donald Trump’s repeated demands for rate cuts were having no impact on Fed policy.
Read more:Fed Chair Powell speaks on Capitol Hill this week with politics front and centerFed holds key rate steady, still sees two more cuts this yearHere are the three reasons why tariffs have yet to drive inflation higher
