U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday said an increase in prices was expected to be temporary, but his administration understood that unchecked inflation over the longer term would pose a “real challenge” to the economy and would remain vigilant.
Biden said he told Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome Powell recently that the Fed was independent and should take whatever steps it deems necessary to support a strong, durable recovery.
“As our economy comes roaring back, we’ve seen some price increases,” Biden said, while rejecting concerns the recent increases could be a sign of persistent inflation.
He said his administration was doing all it could to address supply chain bottlenecks that had pushed up the price of cars, and noted that lumber prices were now easing after spiking higher early in the recovery.
