Investing.com -- Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is at Capitol Hill today and tomorrow for his twice-yearly testimony before Congress.
On Tuesday, Powell appeared before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. He will appear before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday.
In his prepared testimony Tuesday, Powell reiterated that the Federal Reserve does “not need to be in a hurry to adjust our policy stance.”
He noted that the economy is “strong overall and has made significant progress” toward the Fed’s goals over the past two years, while the labor market conditions have cooled from their formerly overheated state and inflation “has moved much closer to our 2 percent longer-run goal.”
“We are attentive to the risks on both sides of our mandate,” stated Powell.
In the remarks, he explained that reducing policy restraint too fast or too much could “hinder progress on inflation,” while reducing policy restraint too slowly or too little could “unduly weaken economic activity and employment.”
As a result, Powell expressed the need for the FOMC to continue to assess incoming data, the evolving outlook, and the balance of risks.
Powell concluded by emphasizing that the Fed will do everything it can to “achieve the two goals Congress set for monetary policy—maximum employment and stable prices.”
Over the period, Powell is likely to field a variety of questions, covering topics such as monetary policy, the impact of Donald Trump’s tariffs, and the potential changes to bank capital requirements.