Jay Powell

I welcomed the announcement last Friday by the U.S.

attorney for the District of Columbia that she had closed the criminal investigation.

I've said that I will not leave the board until this investigation is well and truly over with transparency and finality, and I stand by that.

After my term as chair ends on May 15, I will continue to serve as a governor for a period of time to be determined.

In sort of the textbook, you would look through an oil shock because they tend to be short-lived and they tend to revert.

But looking through energy really is not in front of us right now.

It hasn't even peaked yet.

And I think we'd want to see the backside of that and progress on tariffs before we even thought about reducing rates.

Today, the FOMC decided to leave our policy rate unchanged.

We see the current stance of monetary policy as appropriate to promote progress toward our maximum employment and two percent inflation goals.

I've said that I will not leave the board until this investigation is well and truly over with transparency and finality.

And I stand by that.

I'm encouraged by recent developments and I'm watching the remaining steps in this process carefully.

The U.S.

economy expanded at a solid pace last year and is coming into 2026 on a firm footing.

While job gains have remained low, the unemployment rate has shown some signs of stabilization, and inflation remains somewhat elevated.

Every advanced economy democracy in the world

has come around to this common practice.

It's just an institutional arrangement that has served the people well.

And that is to have a separation between, to not have direct elected official control over the setting of monetary policy.