adminFederal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen spoke before the Senate Banking Committee yesterday, a twice yearly occurrence, saying the U.S. hiring slowdown warrants a cautious approach to raising interest rates, according to wire service Reuters.
Key factors in whether those rates will change hinge on whether the U.S. economic recovery continues and might be influenced by Britain’s vote on whether to leave the European Union, a decision that likely will be felt in financial markets around the globe.
Yellen spoke of “how the central bank was thrown off course within weeks of raising rates last December by a slowdown in domestic growth and international events, including concerns over China’s economy and a further collapse in oil prices,” according to Reuters.
“I would not at this time say that the threats from low rates to financial stability are elevated. I do not think they are elevated at this time. But of course it is something that we need to watch because it can have that impact,” Yellen said.
