In 1977, when I started my first job at the Federal Reserve Board as a staff economist in the Division of International Finance, it was an article of faith in central banking that secrecy about monetary policy decisions was the best policy: Central banks, as a rule, did not discuss these decisions, let alone their future policy intentions.
Janet YellenStores don't order merchandise unless they think they can sell it right away. Manufacturers and builders don't produce unless they have buyers lined up. My business contacts describe this as a paradigm shift and they believe it's permanent.
Janet YellenThe past few decades of widening inequality can be summed up as significant income and wealth gains for those at the very top and stagnant living standards for the majority.
Janet YellenIndividuals out of work for an extended period can become less employable as they lose the specific skills acquired in their previous jobs and also lose the habits needed to hold down any job.
Janet YellenLong-term unemployment can make any worker progressively less employable, even after the economy strengthens.
Janet YellenThe bottom line for housing is that the concerns we used to hear about the possibility of a devastating collapseโone that might be big enough to cause a recession in the U.S. economyโwhile not fully allayed have diminished. Moreover, while the future for housing activity remains uncertain, I think there is a reasonable chance that housing is in the process of stabilizing, which would mean that it would put a considerably smaller drag on the economy going forward.
Janet Yellen