In my remarks I will discuss the current economic outlook before turning to monetary policy. The economic outlook The U.S. economy has recovered substantially since the Great Recession. The unemployment rate, which peaked at 10 percent in October 2009, declined to 5 percent in October of this year.
At that level, the unemployment rate is near the median of Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) participants’ most recent estimates of its longer-run normal level. The economy has created about 13 million jobs since the low point for employment in early 2010, and total nonfarm payrolls are now almost 4-1/2 million higher than just prior to the recession.