Jay Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, said the US central bank was ready to intervene if inflation spiralled out of control, but stressed that he expected price increases to ease later in the year.
“Inflation has increased notably and will likely remain elevated in coming months before moderating,” Powell said in prepared remarks released ahead of a hearing at the House financial services committee on Wednesday.
He added that the Fed “would be prepared to adjust the stance of monetary policy as appropriate if we saw signs that the path of inflation or longer-term inflation expectations were moving materially and persistently beyond levels consistent with our goal”.