Fed Chair Yellen Calls on Congress to Adopt Pro-Growth Policies

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen called on Congress to adopt policies that will get U.S. economic growth out of its “disappointingly slow” post-recession pattern.

In what is likely her final address Wednesday on Capitol Hill as head of the central bank, Yellen gave mostly positive reviews to economic performance. However, she said there are structural factors that need to be addressed.



Among them are an aging population that has translated to slower labor force growth as well as the “unusually sluggish” productivity growth.

“To generate a sustained boost in economic growth without causing inflation that is too high, we will need to address these underlying causes,” Yellen said, according to prepared remarks she will deliver to a joint congressional panel.

“In this regard, the Congress might consider policies that encourage business investment and capital formation, improve the nation’s infrastructure, raise the quality of our educational system, and support innovation and the adoption of new technologies,” she added.

The Senate is in the midst of debating a Republican-led tax reform plan that cleared a key Senate hurdle Tuesday.

In addition, the Trump administration said it intends to push infrastructure spending as a key component of its pro-growth agenda. The White House also has reduced or eliminated a number of regulations and is likely to seek to roll back some of the banking restrictions implemented following the financial crisis.

via CNBC

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Alfonso Esparza

Alfonso Esparza

Senior Currency Analyst at Market Pulse
Alfonso Esparza specializes in macro forex strategies for North American and major currency pairs. Upon joining OANDA in 2007, Alfonso Esparza established the MarketPulseFX blog and he has since written extensively about central banks and global economic and political trends. Alfonso has also worked as a professional currency trader focused on North America and emerging markets. He has been published by The MarketWatch, Reuters, the Wall Street Journal and The Globe and Mail, and he also appears regularly as a guest commentator on networks including Bloomberg and BNN. He holds a finance degree from the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM) and an MBA with a specialization on financial engineering and marketing from the University of Toronto.
Alfonso Esparza