12:53 PM EST, 03/07/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell noted the uncertainty stemming from fiscal policy plans and said that the Federal Open Market Committee can wait to make a monetary policy decision until it gets more clarity.

"While there have been recent developments in some of these areas, especially trade policy, uncertainty around the changes and their likely effects remains high," Powell said in prepared comments to the University of Chicago Booth School of Business' US Monetary Policy Forum before level discussion. "As we parse the incoming information, we are focused on separating the signal from the noise as the outlook evolves. We do not need to be in a hurry, and are well positioned to wait for greater clarity."

Powell repeated his frequent warning that monetary policy is "not on a preset" path and is well-positioned to act as needed. He added that it is likely that tariffs will impact prices for some sectors, but it is uncertain what the effects will be.

"If the economy remains strong but inflation does not continue to move sustainably toward 2%, we can maintain policy restraint for longer," Powell said. "If the labor market were to weaken unexpectedly or inflation were to fall more quickly than anticipated, we can ease policy accordingly."