Bullard Speaks about Financial Stress and the Economy

St. Louis Fed President Jim Bullard presented “Financial Stress and the Economy” at a meeting of the Arkansas Bankers Association in Little Rock. He said that financial stress has been on the rise in recent weeks, but the macroprudential policy response has been swift and appropriate. He added that regulators are prepared to take additional steps if needed. Data on the real U.S. economy have generally been stronger than expected, and inflation remains too high, Bullard said. He pointed out that FOMC policy has kept market-based measures of inflation expectations relatively low, which bodes well for disinflation this year. Continued appropriate macroprudential policy can contain financial stress, while appropriate monetary policy can continue to put downward pressure on inflation, he said.