Powell warns Fed’s inflation fight could spark political opposition

Published

2 years ago

January 10, 2023

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close video Powell is going to push forward rate hikes: Danielle DiMartino Booth

Quill Intelligence LLC CEO and chief strategist gives her take on what is next for the Federal Reserve on ‘Making Money.’

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Tuesday stressed that central bank policymakers remain committed to wrestling high inflation under control, even though the methods to do so can prove to be politically unpopular.

"Price stability is the bedrock of a healthy economy and provides the public with immeasurable benefits over time," Powell said Tuesday in remarks prepared for delivery at a conference held by Sweden's central bank. "But restoring price stability when inflation is high can require measures that are not popular in the short term as we raise interest rates to slow the economy."

The Fed's structure – in which it makes decisions free of oversight by elected officials – allows it to take "these necessary measures without considering short-term political factors," he added.

In his speech, Powell largely stuck to the topic of central bank independence and did not comment on where monetary policy may be headed in coming months. Policymakers last year voted to raise interest rates seven straight times to a range of 4.25% to 4.5%, well into restrictive territory. In speeches since then, officials have signaled that additional hikes are coming – and that they intend to hold rates at elevated levels for some time.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell speaks during a news conference at the Federal Reserve Board building in Washington, Wednesday, July 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP Images)

Although Powell received broad bipartisan support last year for another four years at the helm of the Fed, he has also faced backlash from members of both political parties over the central bank's role in the inflation crisis. Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, have warned the rapid rate hikes could lead to "widespread" job losses, while Republicans have accused the Fed of gross oversight for the spike in consumer prices.

On top of that, climate activists and some lawmakers have demanded the Fed take further action on climate change in order to shift the U.S. economy away from fossil fuels. The Fed has asked six of the nation's biggest banks to participate in a scenario designed to measure their response to climate-related financial risks, but has done little else on the matter.

Powell acknowledged the Fed has "narrow, but important responsibilities" regarding managing potential risks created by climate change, he said the central bank must stick to its dual mandate: Ensuring price stability and maximum employment through interest rate policies.

The Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve building in Washington, D.C., US, on Wednesday, July 6, 2022. (Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

"We should 'stick to our knitting' and not wander off to pursue perceived social benefits that are not tightly linked to our statutory goals and authorities," Powell said. "Taking on new goals, however worthy, without a clear statutory mandate would undermine the case for our independence."

Entertainment

French woman faces online mockery after being conned out of £700,000 by fake Brad Pitt

Published

46 mins ago

January 16, 2025

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French woman faces online mockery after being conned out of £700,000 by fake Brad Pitt

A French woman has been mocked on social media after losing more than €830,000 (£700,000) to scammers posing as the Hollywood actor Brad Pitt.

The 53-year-old interior designer, known only as Anne, thought she was in a year-long romantic relationship with the Fight Club and Ocean’s Eleven star.

But after opening up about her ordeal to reporters, she suffered so much trolling that the French television channel TF1 had to pull her interview.

“The story broadcast this Sunday has resulted in a wave of harassment against the witness,” TF1 presenter Harry Roselmack wrote on X.

“For the protection of victims, we have decided to withdraw it from our platforms,” he added.

At the time of the broadcast, Anne was reported to have been suffering from severe depression.

Anne told TF1’s Seven to Eight show that, after starting to use Instagram for the first time, she was contacted by someone posing as Pitt’s mother.

“She told me that her son needed someone like me,” Anne explained. The scammers messaged her again several days afterwards, this time posing as Brad Pitt.

Anne said she began talking to the fake version of the actor sometime in February 2023 on different social media and messaging platforms, including WhatsApp.

Images from the TF1 programme have been widely shared online, showing a number of AI-generated images of Brad Pitt in hospital, designed to trick Anne in believing she was interacting with the 61-year-old actor.

‘I really didn’t understand’

“At first I said to myself that it was fake, that it’s ridiculous,” Anne explained to TF1. “But I’m not used to social media and I didn’t really understand what was happening to me.”

Scammers began requesting money, telling Anne that Brad was in hospital with kidney cancer and needed money for treatment. He claimed his bank accounts were frozen during divorce proceedings with ex-wife Angelina Jolie.

She eventually agreed to transfer a large sum of money to a Turkish bank account after receiving an email from the fake star’s “doctor”.

Scammers ‘deserve hell’

Anne said she finally realised she had been scammed after she saw pictures of the real Brad Pitt with his current partner, Ines de Ramon.

“I ask myself why they chose me to do such harm like this?” she told TF1. “I’ve never harmed anyone. These people deserve hell.”

Police are investigating the scam, but the interview has triggered some social media posts making jokes at Anne’s expense.

French newspaper Sud Ouest reported that Anne was going through divorce proceedings with a millionaire entrepreneur at the time and needed hospital treatment for severe depression following the scam.

A spokesperson for Brad Pitt told Sky News: “It’s awful that scammers take advantage of fans’ strong connection with celebrities.”

They added it was “an important reminder to not respond to unsolicited online outreach, especially from actors who have no social media presence”.

Environment

Biden’s $635M good-bye, Trump’s DOT pick will investigate Tesla, and a look ahead

Published

1 hour ago

January 15, 2025

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Biden's 5M good-bye, Trump's DOT pick will investigate Tesla, and a look ahead

On today’s episode of Quick Charge we explore the uncertainty around the future of EV incentives, the roles different stakeholders will play in shaping that future, and our friend Stacy Noblet from energy consulting firm ICF stops by to share her take on what lies ahead.

We’ve got a couple of different articles and studies referenced in this forward-looking interview, and I’ve done my best to link to all of them below. If I missed one, let me know in the comments.

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Environment

In December, EV sales were still up and incentives were still sweet – Kelley Blue Book

Published

2 hours ago

January 15, 2025

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In December, EV sales were still up and incentives were still sweet – Kelley Blue Book

December-EV-salesKelley — Chevy Equinox EV (Source: GM)

EV sales kept up their momentum in December 2024, with incentives playing a big role, according to the latest Cox Automotive’s Kelley Blue Book report.

December’s strong EV sales saw an average transaction price (ATP) of $55,544, which helped push the industry-wide ATP higher, according to Kelley Blue Book. The December ATP for an EV was higher year-over-year by 0.8%, slightly below the industry average, and higher month-over-month by 1.1%. Tesla ATPs were higher year-over-year by 10.5%.

Incentives for EVs remained elevated in December, although they were slightly lower month-over-month at 14.3% of ATP, down from 14.7% in November.

EV incentives were higher by an impressive 41% year-over-year and have been above 12% of ATP for six consecutive months. Strong sales incentives, which averaged more than $6,700 per sale in 2024, were one reason EV sales surpassed 1.3 million units last year, according to Cox Automotive, a new record for volume and share.

(My colleague Jameson Dow reported yesterday, “In 2024, the world sold 3.5 million more EVs than it did in the previous year … This increase is larger than the 3.2 million increase in EV sales from the previous year – meaning that EV sales aren’t just up, but that the rate of growth is itself increasing.”)

Kelley Blue Book estimated that in December, approximately 84,000 vehicles – or 5.6% of total sales – transacted at prices higher than $80,000 – the highest volume ever. KBB lumps gas cars and EVs together into this luxury vehicle category, so this is where Tesla Cybertruck is slotted.

However, Tesla bundles sales figures of Cybertruck with Model S, Model X, and Tesla Semi(!) into a category it calls “other models,” so we don’t know for sure exactly how many Cybertrucks Tesla sold in Q4, much less in December. However, Electrek‘s Fred Lambert estimates between 9,000 and 12,000 Cybertrucks were sold in Q4, and that’s not a stellar sales figure.

What will January bring when it comes to EV ATPs? What about tax credits? Check back in a month and I’ll fill you in.

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