New York Fed President John Williams said the higher oil prices stemming from Russia invasion of Ukraine may act like a “tax” on American consumers. But, “the economy is coming into this with a lot of forward momentum. It’s definitely not a stagflation issue.”
Williams expect inflation to come down later this year but stays “well above” 2% target. He emphasized Fed has the “ability to adjust interest rates higher if inflation ends up being much more persistent or staying much higher than we expect or want”.