If I am confirmed by the Senate I will do everything in my power, in collaboration with by Fed colleagues to help assure the continued prosperity and stability of the American economy, |
If I am confirmed, I am confident that my colleagues on the Federal Open Market Committee and I will maintain the focus on long-term price stability as monetary policy's greatest contribution to general economic prosperity and maximum employment, |
If I am confirmed, I am confident that my colleagues on the Federal Open Market Committee and I will maintain the focus on long-term price stability as monetary policy's greatest contribution to general economic prosperity and maximum employment. |
If I am confirmed, I will be strictly independent of all political influences and will be guided solely by the Federal Reserve's mandate from Congress and by the public interest, |
If you are asking me if I would advocate that the Chinese go to greater flexibility in their exchange rate, I certainly would. |
impact on consumer spending and production broadly will be modest. |
In any case, the Federal Reserve will continue to monitor this sector closely. |
In the absence of a shift in market perceptions of the relative attractiveness of U.S. and foreign assets, government policies would likely have only limited effects on the trade balance. |
In the shorter term, the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina will have a palpable effect on the national economy. |
In these circumstances, the FOMC judged that some further firming of monetary policy may be necessary, an assessment with which I concur. |
Indeed, I would argue that, in situations of considerable slack, growth that is generated solely by increased productivity, and that is unaccompanied by substantial employment growth, may possibly require monetary ease, rather than monetary tightening, in the short run. |
Inflation is not even a remote risk in the U.S.. Because inflation is so low, monetary policy can afford to be patient to be sure that the recovery is sustained. |
Inflation is up, driven by energy prices. Underlying core rates remain low, which is encouraging. |
It's been a resilient economy, it's responded well and job creation has proceeded apace. |
It's only an attempt to perhaps provide a bit of additional confidence, a bit of additional assurance or a bit of additional certainty to the markets about the Federal Reserve's long-term objective. |