Fed in Wait-and-See on Interest Rates Despite Oil Increases, Says Powell

Cambridge, MA, March 31, 2026-Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell spoke to Harvard students Monday, wherein he discussed the Fed’s decision to hold interest rates steady amid rising oil prices and geopolitical tensions, reports The Harvard Crimson.

“Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell told Harvard undergraduates on Monday that interest rates are in a ‘good place’ to hold steady, even as a widening war in the Middle East sends oil prices higher and muddies the inflation outlook.

“‘We feel like our policy is in a good place for us to wait and see how that turns out,’ Powell said.”