Fed’s Brainard Says Reducing Elevated Inflation ‘Is of Paramount Importance’
A top Federal Reserve official said the central bank is strongly committed to taking steps that will reduce inflation this year, including by approving significant reductions in its $9 trillion asset portfolio at its policy meeting early next month.
Fed governor Lael Brainard, who is awaiting Senate confirmation to serve as the Fed’s vice chairwoman, said she anticipated shrinking the asset portfolio—sometimes referred to as a “balance sheet”—and a series of interest-rate increases to move the Fed’s policy stance to a more neutral position that no longer provides stimulus to the economy later this year.
