Fed Chief says employment and inflation goals are still far

The Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell stated during his Senate hearing that inflation and employment are still far from the Fed's targets.

Powell hinted in his prepared speech that Fed's dovish approach (near zero interest rates and asset purchases) will remain for a while.

The Fed Chief added "if it turns out unwanted inflation pressures arise, and they’re persistent, we have the tools to deal with that."

Powell had stressed before that the US economy's recovery had moderated and employment slowed during the past few months, but expressed optimism about a return to recovery in tandem with vaccination.