the 2019 u. s. monetary policy forum, sponsored by the initiative on global markets at the university of chicago booth school of business, new york, new york, february 22 ; and jerome h. powell ( 2019 ), “ monetary policy : normalization and the road ahead, ” speech delivered at the 2019 siepr economic summit, stanford institute of economic policy research, stanford, california, march 8. 3 one reason for caution is the risk of building financial market imbalances, such as currently elevated levels of risky corporate debt. in my view, it is better to address such financial imbalances by activation of our countercyclical capital buffer, rigorous use of stress tests, and beefed - up monitoring of leveraged lending than by monetary policy. 4 see lael brainard ( 2016 ), “ the ‘ new normal ’ and what it means for monetary policy, ” speech delivered at the chicago council on global affairs, chicago, illinois, september 12. 5 5. see sharon kozicki ( 2019 ), “ monetary policy strategies for the federal reserve : discussion of practical considerations ( pdf ), ” presentation at the conference on monetary policy strategy, tools, and communications practices, federal reserve bank of chicago, june 5. 6 see lars e. o. svensson ( 2019 ), “ monetary policy strategies for the federal reserve ( pdf ), ” paper prepared for the conference on monetary policy strategy, tools, and communications practices. federal reserve bank of chicago, june 5. 3 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches 7 see katharine g. abraham and john c. haltiwanger ( 2019 ), “ how tight is the labor market? ( pdf ) ” paper prepared for the conference on monetary policy strategies, tools, and communications practices, federal reserve bank of chicago, june 5. 8 see board of governors of the federal reserve system ( 2019 ), “ panel 1 : what does full employment look like for your community or constituency? ” at the conference on monetary policy strategy, tools, and communications practices, federal reserve bank of chicago, june 5 ; and board of governors of the federal reserve system ( 2019 ), “ panel 2 : transmission of monetary policy to the economy : beyond the headlines, ” at the conference on monetary policy strategy, tools, and communications practices, federal reserve bank of chicago, june 5. 4 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches

lael brainard : " fed listens " in cincinnati - how does monetary policy affect your community? speech by ms lael brainard, member of the board of governors of the federal reserve system, at the policy summit 2019 " connecting people and places to opportunity ", federal reserve bank of cleveland, cincinnati, ohio, 21 june 2019. * * * it is good to be here in cincinnati. i want to thank my colleague, loretta mester, for inviting me to participate today, and it is a pleasure to participate in the federal reserve bank of cleveland ’ s policy summit. 1 today ’ s session is part of a series called fed listens. the federal reserve is reaching out to communities around the country to hear how americans are experiencing the economy day to day and to make sure we are carrying out the monetary policy goals assigned to us by the congress in the most effective way we can. 2 the congress has assigned the federal reserve to use monetary policy to achieve maximum employment and price stability. these two goals are what we refer to as our dual mandate. by price stability, we mean moderate and stable inflation. the federal open market committee ( fomc ) — the group at the fed responsible for determining monetary policy — has announced that our goal is to keep inflation around 2 percent over time. the maximum - employment part of our dual mandate means that the congress has directed us to achieve the highest level of employment that is consistent with price stability. the outlook earlier this week, president mester and i participated in the meeting of the fomc, where we had the opportunity to share our views on the economy and policy. my own assessment is that the most likely path for the economy remains solid. the latest data suggest that consumer spending is robust, and consumer confidence is high. although the pace of payroll gains has moderated recently, unemployment is at a 50 - year low, wages are growing, participation in the labor force has expanded, and unemployment insurance claims are at cycle lows. despite recent volatility, financial conditions overall remain supportive. recent weeks, however, have seen important downside risks. crosscurrents from policy uncertainty have risen since early may, crimping business investment plans, raising concerns in some financial market segments, and weighing on global growth prospects. foreign authorities are seeking additional policy space to address growth and inflation shortfalls. in addition, recent indicators of inflation and inflation expectations have been disappointing, making it all the more important to sustain the economy ’