01:56 PM EDT, 04/16/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Recent inflation data have not provided the confidence that the Federal Open Market Committee needs to begin to lower interest rates, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Tuesday.

Powell, appearing in a live conversation with Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem at the Wilson Center in Washington, DC, said it could take longer than previously expected for the FOMC to become confident enough in the slowdown in inflation to consider rate reductions, adding that the committee can maintain the federal funds rate at its current level for "as long as needed" to assure inflation is heading down to the 2% goal.

US economic growth has performed well over the last year, Powell said, though recent inflation has shown "a lack of progress" its return toward the inflation goal, noting that March inflation data show little change in the 12-month rate and three-month and six-month rates that were elevated.

At the same time, supply and demand for labor has moved into better balance, allowing for gradual moderation of wage pressures, but "real strength" remains, he said.