Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell delivered a seemingly simple message in Jackson Hole in August—that he and his colleagues on the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will do what it takes to get US inflation down to 2 percent. Nestled in that headline message, however, were two important components: first, a welcome rebuttal to the recent chatter from some economists that maybe the target should be adjusted upward and, second, a reiteration of his resolve to finish the job on inflation, even if that means putting the country through a recession. A strong case can be made for raising the target to 3 percent, but ... (full story)