U.S. energy prices soar, Fed Chairman Powell: "There's really nothing we can do about oil prices"
[Global Web Report] According to reports from the US Politico News Network and "Russia Today" (RT), US Federal Reserve Chairman Powell said on the 23rd local time that he will make every effort to solve the domestic inflation problem in the United States, but he also admitted that he is not interested in food and oil prices. "There's nothing we can do" when energy prices soar.
Powell said at a Senate Banking Committee hearing on the same day that he did not expect gasoline or grocery prices to fall as a result of the Fed's rate hike, Politico News said.
"There's really nothing we can do about oil prices," Powell said. "Oil prices are set globally."
RT said that Powell's latest statement believes that the new crown epidemic and the Russian-Ukrainian conflict have increased inflationary pressures around the world. He said that if it were not for the "war" in Ukraine, the soaring food prices "will definitely be much lower."
Powell has previously denied that the Russian-Ukrainian military conflict has contributed to U.S. inflation.
According to previous reports, at the hearing of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee on the morning of the 22nd, Senator Bill Hagerty, a Tennessee Republican, asked Powell: "Considering how inflation has deteriorated over the past 18 months, would you Saying that the war in Ukraine is the main driver of inflation in the US?” To which, Powell answered unequivocally: “No, inflation was high before—certainly before the 'war' in Ukraine (it was high).”
Inflation picked up again in May, with the consumer price index rising 8.6 percent, well above economists' expectations and marking the fastest pace since December 1981, the U.S. government reported earlier this month. inflation rate.
Inflation has put enormous economic pressure on most American households, forcing them to pay more for everyday necessities like food, gas and rent.