Economics
Powell Sees ‘Highly Desirable’ Gains Behind Modest Jobs View
- Fed chair plays down higher yields, pins on brighter outlook
- Treasury Chief reiterates confidence unemployment will drop
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Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank’s relatively muted forecast for lower unemployment this year -- despite very strong expected growth -- was actually disguising “highly desirable” labor market gains.
“We see participation expanding,” he told the Senate Banking Committee Wednesday, referring to the process where people who’re not currently being counted in the jobless rate reenter the labor force. “That holds the unemployment rate up -- it is a highly desirable outcome.”