WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- Fed chair Janet Yellen testified before Congress on Tuesday about the current condition of the U.S. economy.
In the report to Congress, Yellen delivers good news, saying the GDP is up and the pickup in economic activity added about 1.25 million jobs since July 2013 and 3.25 million since Aug. 2012. Despite the positive job numbers, she said, "the recovery in the labor market is far from complete. The unemployment rate is still well above levels the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) participants estimate is consistent with maximum sustainable employment."
Yellen listed the problems remaining with unemployment and according to her brief, people without a job for 6 months or more make up a large percentage of the unemployed, and the number of people with a part-time job remains very high. Due to these observations, Yellen cautioned that more than the unemployment rate must be taken into account when evaluating the U.S. labor market.
In regards to the outlook for 2014, Yellen said, "My colleagues on the FOMC and I anticipate the economic activity and employment will expand at a moderate pace this year and next. The unemployment rate will continue to decline towards its longer run sustainable level and inflation will move back to 2 percent over coming years." She finished by saying that recent volatility global economic markets do not seem to pose a substantial risk to the U.S. economy, but they will continue to monitor the situation.
[WSJ Live]
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