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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Michael Casey

Powell says Fed is monitoring energy price spikes, but that it's limited in what it can do

Jerome Powell Harvard - (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Monday that it is important to closely monitor inflation amid a spike in energy prices from the Iran war.

Powell, who spoke before nearly 400 students at Harvard University as gas prices inched toward an average of $4 per gallon in the U.S., said there wasn't a lot Fed policymakers could do since energy shocks “tend to come and go pretty quickly” and monetary maneuvers work over the longer-term. But a series of energy shocks, nevertheless, could be concerning.

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