March 19, 2025
Jerome H. Powell
March 19, 2025 FOMC Press Conference
- The chair said the median FOMC participant projects GDP to rise 1.7 percent this year, lower than the December projection, and a bit below 2 percent over the next two years.
- The chair said the median projection for the unemployment rate in the Summary of Economic Projections is 4.4 percent at the end of this year and 4.3 percent over the next two years.
- The chair said the median projection for total PCE inflation is 2.7 percent this year and 2.2 percent next year, a little higher than projected in December, with 2027 at the 2 percent objective.
- The chair said the median participant projects the appropriate federal funds rate will be 3.9 percent at the end of this year and 3.4 percent at the end of next year, unchanged from December.
- The chair said the Federal Reserve's five-year review of its monetary policy framework will include Fed Listens events and a research conference in May, with the review intended to wrap up by late summer.
From the opening statement
Press conference
CHAIR POWELL. Good afternoon. My colleagues and I remain squarely focused on achieving our dual-mandate goals of maximum employment and stable prices for the benefit of the American people. The economy is strong overall and has made significant progress toward our goals over the past two years. Labor market conditions are solid, and inflation has moved closer to our 2 percent longer-run goal, though it remains somewhat elevated.
In support of our goals, today the Federal Open Market Committee decided to leave our policy interest rate unchanged. We also made the technical decision to slow the pace of decline in the size of our balance sheet. I’ll have more to say about these decisions after briefly reviewing economic developments.
Economic activity continued to expand at a solid pace in the fourth quarter of last year, with GDP rising at 2.3 percent. Recent indications, however, point to a moderation in consumer spending following the rapid growth seen over the second half of 2024. Surveys of households and businesses point to heightened uncertainty about the economic outlook. It remains to be seen how these developments might affect future spending and investment. In our Summary of Economic Projections, the median participant projects GDP to rise 1.7 percent this year, somewhat lower than projected in December, and to rise a bit below 2 percent over the next two years.