WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday said it was appropriate for the Federal Reserve to recalibrate the support it provides to the U.S. economy, in light of rising prices and the pace of recovery.
“Given the strength of our economy and recent price increases, it’s appropriate, as … Fed Chairman (Jerome) Powell has indicated, to recalibrate the support that is now necessary,” Biden told a news conference.
“The critical job of making sure that the elevated prices don’t become entrenched rests with the Federal Reserve, which has a dual mandate: full employment and stable prices,” the president said.
With inflation rising at its fastest pace in nearly 40 years, Fed policymakers have signaled they will raise interest rates several times this year, likely starting in March, with a reduction in the Fed’s $8 trillion balance sheet to start some time soon.
At his renomination hearing earlier this month, Powell told lawmakers that he would not allow inflation to become “entrenched,” and said a tighter policy stance was necessary to keep the economy growing.
Biden also called on the U.S. Senate to confirm his recent nominations for key roles on the Federal Reserve Board “without any further delay.”
(Reporting by Alexandra Alper; writing by Andrea Shalal; editing by Howard Goller and Cynthia Osterman)
