The Federal Reserve is prepared to push ahead with a “series” of interest rate increases from March, despite a highly uncertain economic outlook as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Jay Powell told US lawmakers on Wednesday.
The Fed chair confirmed his support for a quarter-point rate rise at the central bank’s March meeting as he laid out the case for tightening monetary policy amid heightened geopolitical tensions, in testimony delivered to the House Financial Services Committee.
Powell said he expects a “series” of interest rate increases this year, and also hinted that he could support raising rates by larger increments later on if inflation fails to moderate sufficiently.