Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in a speech yesterday that ” by many national-level measures, our labor market is very strong.” However, he also noted that “aggregate statistics can mask important variations between different demographic and income groups, as well as significant regional differences.” He pointed to statistics indicating unemployment rates in some persistently poor rural counties remain much higher than the national figures.
And, “while the economy is strong overall, we recognize that some communities have yet to feel the full benefits of the ongoing expansion.” Fed is “conducting research, collaborating with communities, and assessing financial regulations so that our nation’s current prosperity will benefit small towns and cities alike.”
