In these opening remarks, I will touch on the international and regional influences, technological changes, business needs, changing regulation and their impact on the financial system and on the economy. Further, I will look at the prospects for the sector’s performance in an increasingly liberalised and globalised environment.
Other advanced economies have also struggled to achieve their inflation goals in recent decades. The persistent undershoot of inflation from our 2 percent longer-run objective is a cause for concern. Many find it counterintuitive that the Fed would want to push up inflation. After all, low and stable inflation is essential for a well-functioning economy.