for local businesses to take advantage of both the knowledge created and the availability of research facilities at local colleges and universities. partnerships between private industry and higher - education institutions are an important ingredient in this regard. going forward, i believe these partnerships will become more important than ever – particularly for places like buffalo that continue to undergo economic restructuring. fortunately, the region has a strong higher education sector in place. conclusion to sum up, the incoming data on the u. s. economy has been a bit more upbeat of late, suggesting that the recovery may be getting better established. but, while these developments are certainly encouraging, it is far too soon to conclude that we are out of the woods in terms of generating a strong, sustainable recovery. on the inflation front, the year - over - year rate of consumer price inflation has slowed in recent months, and despite the recent rise of gasoline prices, we expect inflation to moderate further in 2012. here in buffalo, the economic restructuring has positioned the region ’ s health and education sector as a potentially solid base for longer - term growth. thank you for your kind attention. i would be happy to take a few questions. bis central bankers ’ speeches

william c dudley : the national and regional economic outlook remarks by mr william c dudley, president and chief executive officer of the federal reserve bank of new york, at the buffalo - niagara partnership, buffalo, new york, 13 april 2012. * * * good morning, i am pleased to be here in buffalo to address the buffalo - niagara partnership. it is always a pleasure to speak with the business community because of the leadership role you play in the economy of the region. i thank you all for inviting me here today. i try to get out of my office in new york city as much as i can to get a sense of regional economic conditions across the second federal reserve district. i was last here in buffalo in 2010 and, more recently, i traveled to west point and the capital region and long island. these visits are just as important as any trip i might take to washington, d. c., to help formulate monetary policy, or to switzerland, to help shape international bank regulation. each visit within the region helps me to deepen the relationships with the people i represent. i believe that the understanding of issues and concerns that i gain today will help ensure that the fed ’ s policy decisions reflect the public interest. today, i want to talk a bit about the fed – what we do and why we do it. then i ’ ll provide some thoughts about the economic outlook nationally and locally. after that, i ’ ll be happy to answer any questions you have about what the fed does and why, and about the economic outlook. as always, what i have to say reflects my own views and not necessarily those of the federal reserve system or the federal open market committee, also known as the fomc. what the new york fed does by way of introduction, i will briefly review what my colleagues and i do at the new york fed on behalf of the second district. i have the great fortune to serve as vice chair of the fomc that meets eight times a year in washington to set interest rates and make other decisions about monetary policy. the members of this committee all strive to set policy to advance the mandate given to us by congress to promote the maximum level of employment consistent with price stability. sometimes we have different views on the specific policy choice at hand, and you should view this as completely appropriate : these are hard questions – particularly during difficult economic circumstances such as we face today. in fact, i think we make better decisions as a committee because we don ’ t