Powell: Fed rate increases are intended to prolong recovery
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Thursday that the economy is healthy and that the Fed’s steady interest rate increases are intended to prolong its expansion.
Powell said he and his colleagues believe the Fed’s approach to gradually raising rates from ultra-lows to historically normal levels “is helping to sustain this strong economy for the longer-run benefit of all Americans.”
The Fed chairman said the benefits of the strong economy have helped boost employment, but he acknowledged that the benefits haven’t reached all Americans.
“Many of our country’s economic challenges are beyond the scope of the Fed, but we are doing all we can to keep the economy strong and moving forward,” Powell said in remarks prepared fora conference of Rhode Island business executives sponsored by Sen. Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat.