US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said in a speech he will deliver at a forum in Stockholm, Sweden, that the Fed has valuable but limited responsibilities to climate-related financial risks.
Powell continued, “But without a clear Congressional law, it would be inappropriate for us to use our monetary policy to promote a greener economy and achieve other climate goals. We are not and will not be climate policy makers.”
While Powell did not comment on the economic or cash outlook in his speech, he said that in times of high inflation, it may be necessary to take measures that are not widely used to slow the economy in the short term to restore price stability.
Powell spoke before the interest rate decision, which will take place in about 3 weeks. The Fed increased the interest rates to the 4,254.5 percent band in December, and Fed members gave signals that they could raise the interest rates above 5 percent this year.