Overview
- Janet Yellen, speaking Wednesday at an investment summit in Hong Kong, said the Federal Reserve could still deliver one rate cut later this year and will stay open to incoming data.
- She called the Iran conflict a broad supply shock and pointed to knock-on effects that raise costs for fuel, shipping, fertilizer, food and chips.
- Oil prices have jumped more than 30% since the fighting began, and the fuel surge helped drive the biggest monthly rise in U.S. consumer prices in nearly four years in March.
- Yellen warned that President Donald Trump’s public attacks on Chair Jerome Powell pose an unusual threat to the Fed’s independence.
- Traders have largely priced out rate cuts for 2026, reversing earlier wagers for multiple reductions this year as inflation readings strengthened.