Inflation is finally coming down, but Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned that the U.S. economy is not out of the woods yet. 

In a question-and-answer session at the Economic Club of Washington, DC, the nation's top banker said that he expects the process to take some time. 

“The disinflationary process, the process of getting inflation down, has begun and it’s begun in the goods sector, which is about a quarter of our economy,” he said. “But it has a long way to go. These are the very early stages.”

The comments track with Powell's previous statements that goods inflation is only part of the run-up in prices, and that services are now one of the biggest drivers of inflation. 

Despite Powell sticking to his guns that inflation could be here for a while, stocks got a bump on Tuesday following the comments. Many investors appear to be holding out hope that the Fed will soon pull back on rate hikes, which would give equity markets some room to breathe. 

Powell, for his part, stressed that it will likely take another full year for inflation to be brought under control. “We expect 2023 to be a year of significant declines in inflation. It’s actually our job to make sure that that’s the case,” he said. 

Still, the Fed has already started moderating its stance. Earlier this month, the Fed announced a 25-basis-point hike, down from 50 basis points enacted at its previous meeting.

Share:
More In Business
Stretching Your Dollar: How to Negotiate Medical Bills
With high healthcare costs, bills can quickly add up. In some cases, it is possible to negotiate your medical bills. Barak Richman, law professor at George Washington University, joined Cheddar News to discuss the easiest way to talk to medical debt companies about what's owed.
Stretching Your Dollar: Navigating Insurance
Millions of people have selected insurance plans for 2024 but sometimes navigating them can be tricky time consuming and expensive. Paula Pant, host of 'Afford Anything' podcast, joined Cheddar News to break down what's needed to know about their insurance plans.
Study: Over 58% of Hybrid Workers Are 'Coffee Badging'
With more employees being called back to the office, many workers are suddenly protesting by being in the office for as little time as possible. As the term suggests, coffee-badging means coming in for just enough time to have a cup of coffee, show your face, and swipe your badge.
Load More