The US central bank will continue to move carefully but will not hesitate to tighten policy further if needed to contain inflation, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has said.
“If it becomes appropriate to tighten policy further, we will not hesitate to do so,” Mr Powell said in opening remarks prepared for a panel discussion at an International Monetary Fund conference in Washington on Thursday.
“We will continue to move carefully, however, allowing us to address both the risk of being misled by a few good months of data and the risk of overtightening,” he said.
Mr Powell said policymakers are committed to ensuring interest rates are high enough to return inflation to their 2 per cent target, but added that “we are not confident that we have achieved such a stance”.
The tenor of Mr Powell’s comments reinforced that policymakers are not ready to declare an end to their tightening campaign, even though financial markets and many economists have concluded the central bank is done raising rates.
Mr Powell said the supply-side benefits that have helped slow inflation so far may have run their course, and repeated that stronger growth could warrant further tightening.
“We still believe the Fed is done hiking for this cycle, but today’s speech should serve as notice that their rhetoric must stay hawkish until they’ve seen further improvement in inflation,” JP Morgan Chase chief US economist Michael Feroli said in a note to clients.
Treasuries extended their losses from a poorly received 30-year bond sale after Mr Powell’s remarks, and the market pushed the timing of the Fed’s first expected quarter-point rate cut out to July from June next year.
US central bankers are trying to assess whether they need to take their benchmark policy rate slightly higher, and debating how long they should hold rates at elevated levels.
The policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee last week held rates at 5.25 per cent to 5.5 per cent range, the highest level in 22 years.
Inflation has decelerated but remains above the Fed’s target, at 3.4 per cent for the year through September. Fed officials are set to meet again on December 12 and December 13.
In his speech, the Fed chief said it was not clear how much more inflation progress can be made in the future through supply-side improvements.
“Going forward, it may be that a greater share of the progress in reducing inflation will have to come from tight monetary policy restraining the growth of aggregate demand,” Mr Powell said.
He also suggested the central bank will undertake another review of its policy framework beginning in 2024, after announcing an overhaul in 2020.
“Among the questions we will consider is the degree to which the structural features of the economy that led to low interest rates in the pre-pandemic era will persist,” Mr Powell said.
“With time, we will continue to learn from the experience of the past few years, and what implications it may hold for monetary policy.”
The Fed chief participated in a panel discussion with Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron, IMF First Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath and Harvard University economist Kenneth Rogoff.
Shortly after he began speaking, Mr Powell was hustled out of the conference room as a group of about a dozen environmental protesters jumped on stage. Brandishing a banner, they chanted and spoke out for about five minutes before departing.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
Four tips to secure IoT networks
Mohammed Abukhater, vice president at FireEye in the Middle East, said:
- Keep device software up-to-date. Most come with basic operating system, so users should ensure that they always have the latest version
- Besides a strong password, use two-step authentication. There should be a second log-in step like adding a code sent to your mobile number
- Usually smart devices come with many unnecessary features. Users should lock those features that are not required or used frequently
- Always create a different guest network for visitors
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
What is Reform?
Reform is a right-wing, populist party led by Nigel Farage, a former MEP who won a seat in the House of Commons last year at his eighth attempt and a prominent figure in the campaign for the UK to leave the European Union.
It was founded in 2018 and originally called the Brexit Party.
Many of its members previously belonged to UKIP or the mainstream Conservatives.
After Brexit took place, the party focused on the reformation of British democracy.
Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson became its first MP after defecting in March 2024.
The party gained support from Elon Musk, and had hoped the tech billionaire would make a £100m donation. However, Mr Musk changed his mind and called for Mr Farage to step down as leader in a row involving the US tycoon's support for far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson who is in prison for contempt of court.
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
