Powell: Fed ‘not at all sure’ inflation will fade next year

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that the Federal Reserve can’t be sure that inflation will fade in the second half of next year, as many economists expect, a fresh sign of the Fed’s growing concern about rising prices. Powell, in comments to the House Financial Services Committee, said that most economists see current price spikes, which have lifted inflation to a three-decade high, as largely a response to the pandemic’s disruptions to supply and demand. As Americans have spent more time at home, they have ramped up spending on furniture, appliances, and laptop computers. Soaring demand for such goods, combined with parts shortages, have resulted in supply chain snarls and higher prices.