Yellen Claims Recession Isn't Inevitable As U.S. Battles Recession

On Sunday, June 19, 2022, United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated that a recession is not "inevitable" as the Biden administration works to combat record inflation, Daniel Uria reported for United Press International (UPI).

Photo Insert: Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has echoed the reassurances of the US President.

Yellen said on ABC News' This Week that President Joe Biden has made lowering inflation his "top priority," and that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has also set a goal of lowering inflation "while maintaining a strong labor market."

She added, "That's going to take skill and luck, but I believe it's possible. I don't think a recession is inevitable."

According to the most recent Consumer Price Index from the Labor Department, inflation, which was already at 40-year highs, rose to an annual rate of 8.6 percent in May.

Powell and the Fed raised interest rates by 0.75 percent on Wednesday, the highest since 1994, just before the US economy boomed for the rest of the 1990s, as he attempted to steer the economy to a so-called "soft landing" by lowering inflation without triggering a recession.

Yellen stated on Sunday that she did "expect the economy to slow," but that a recession is still avoidable. "It's been growing at a very rapid rate ... as the labor market has recovered and we have reached full employment," she said.

"It's natural now that we expect a transition to steady and stable growth, but I don't think a recession is at all inevitable," Yellen said, citing data showing that "consumer spending remains very strong" despite higher food and energy prices.

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