Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated that a’splurge’ in spending by Americans confined to their homes during the outbreak was responsible for the subsequent high inflation.
She made the remark during an interview on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” where she cited a surge in consumer product purchases in contrast to a decline in regular spending habits on items such as movies and concerts.
The host then inquired, “What occurred, simply and plainly?” She responded, “Normally, you wouldn’t expect inflation to rise significantly, if at all, merely because the economy is recovering quickly.”
The simple question elicited laughter, and Yellen described answering it as “a difficulty.”
Then she described the ‘rapid recovery’ from the pandemic following Biden’s election.
Yellen stated, “However, it turned out that the pandemic had extremely unique effects on the economy.” Remember that everyone has ceased spending on services.
They resided in their residences for at least a year.
They desired to purchase barbecues and office furnishings. They worked remotely from home. They began spending lavishly on goods and technology, continued Yellen.
‘We were suddenly utilizing technology in our work. And bottlenecks began to arise where supply in key economic sectors simply couldn’t keep up with demand,’ she explained.
She commented on Wednesday, as new data indicates a possible stabilization of inflation.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell suggested Wednesday that the Fed’s rapid rate hikes may be slowed. Powell stated, “It makes sensible to slow the rate of our rate hikes as we approach the degree of restraint that will be sufficient to drive inflation down.”
According to the Commerce Department, core personal consumption increased by 0.2%, which is a rise of 5% over the previous year. This may imply a reduction in inflation, which slammed Americans hard in their wallets throughout the year and became a major issue in the elections.
‘Today, we learned that inflation moderated and salaries increased in October, after yesterday’s news that our economy grew at an even faster rate from July through September than we had previously believed,’ Biden said in a statement released on Thursday.
‘There are early indications that we are making headway in our fight against inflation, even as we shift to a more steady, stable economic expansion. This is excellent news for the American people and another proof that my economic plan is effective. It will take time to return inflation to normal, and there may be setbacks along the road, but the American people should have faith that our approach to combat inflation without giving up all the great economic achievements American workers have made is effective.
Yellen also discussed the impending inclusion of her signature on currency. She stated that several of her predecessors’ signatures on financial documents were hardly readable.
Prior secretaries ‘Tim Geithner and Jack Lew signed the money with illegible signatures,’ she stated.
She stated, “Secretary Lew signed it with what appeared to be eight interconnected circles.”
She told Colbert, “I knew this was something you could really mess up, and I wanted to do it perfect, so I rehearsed and practiced.”
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