U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen confirmed on Monday that she has not seen any evidence of a U.S. economic downturn. Still, she warned that economic momentum remains reliant on the government’s ability to pass legislation to support the world’s biggest economy.
“I don’t see any signs that the economy is at risk of a downturn,” Yellen explained, taking note of the strong labor market as well as cooling inflation. “There’s absolutely no reason for a shutdown,” she advised, adding that “Creating a situation that could cause a loss of momentum is something we don’t need as a risk at this point.”
Although a strong labor market is seldom conducive to suppressing inflation, Yellen explained that because it is cooling, the labor market is providing room for inflation to decline to the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.