Fed’s Yellen says solid economic growth means more rate hikes ahead

(Reuters) – Outgoing Federal Reserve Bank Chair Janet Yellen said on Friday that solid economic growth, faster wage increases, and a tightening labor market mean the U.S. central bank is likely to need to continue to raise interest rates gradually, as it has signaled it will.

“The economy is growing at a healthy, solid pace,” Yellen said in an interview with PBS NewsHour on the last day of her four-year term. “The job market is strong and inflation is low … The Federal Reserve has been on a path of gradual rate increases, and if conditions continue as they have been, that process is likely to continue, and as it does we would expect long rates to move up.”

On Saturday she hands the reins to President Donald Trump’s pick to replace her, Governor Jerome Powell. She will stay in Washington as a fellow at the Brookings Institution, the think tank where former Fed Chair Ben Bernanke also works.

Disclaimer: Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. All CFDs (stocks, indexes, futures) and Forex prices are not provided by exchanges but rather by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual market price, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Therefore Fusion Media doesn`t bear any responsibility for any trading losses you might incur as a result of using this data.

Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.