Jerome Powell waves inflation worries away as Fed holds rates near zero

Powell was dismissive of anecdotes of labor shortages, explaining it mostly as an allocation problem

Jerome Powell had a ready answer to counter criticism that the Federal Reserve is running risks with inflation, as he signaled it will maintain aggressive support as the U.S. recovery gathers speed. “The economy is beginning to move ahead with real momentum,” the Fed chair told reporters Wednesday after the central bank held interest rates near zero and kept bond purchases at $120 billion a month.

That’s likely to push up prices amid surging demand, but “an episode of one-time price increases as the economy re-opens is not the same thing as, and is not likely to lead to, persistently higher