Current:Home > NewsHow 2% became the target for inflation -Core Financial Strategies
How 2% became the target for inflation
View
Date:2025-04-28 07:53:33
If the Fed had a mantra to go along with its mandate, it might well be "two percent." That number, the Fed's longtime inflation target, has been adopted by many other central banks around the world. Jerome Powell said it 17 times in a press conference last week. It's become almost synonymous with smooth, healthy economic growth.
But how did two percent become the Fed's target? For an organization staffed with mathematicians and economists, the answer is surprisingly unsophisticated. Join us to hear about the history behind the number, and why some economists are calling for a change.
Music by Drop Electric. Find us: Twitter / Facebook / Newsletter.
Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, PocketCasts and NPR One.
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
veryGood! (42749)
Related
- Global Warming Set the Stage for Los Angeles Fires
- Florida man charged with first-degree murder in rape, killing of Madeline 'Maddie' Soto
- Celebrate Draft Day With These Top Picks, From Cool Merch to Home Decor & More Touchdown-Worthy Finds
- New York City to require warning labels for sugary foods and drinks in chain restaurants
- What to know about Tuesday’s US House primaries to replace Matt Gaetz and Mike Waltz
- What Matty Healy's Mom Has to Say About Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department
- Body-cam footage shows police left an Ohio man handcuffed and facedown on a bar floor before he died
- Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid scores 50 vs. Knicks while dealing with Bell's palsy
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- Minneapolis smokers to pay some of the highest cigarette prices in US with a $15 per-pack minimum
Ranking
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Judge denies request for Bob Baffert-trained Muth to run in 2024 Kentucky Derby
- US abortion battle rages on with moves to repeal Arizona ban and a Supreme Court case
- William Decker: Founder of Wealth Forge Institute
- Sonya Massey's father decries possible release of former deputy charged with her death
- Arkansas woman pleads guilty to selling 24 boxes of body parts stolen from cadavers
- Federal judge temporarily blocks confusing Montana voter registration law
- Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes take commanding 3-0 leads in NHL playoffs
Recommendation
Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
Early voting begins for North Carolina primary runoff races
AP Week in Pictures: North America
Google parent reports another quarter of robust growth, rolls out first-ever quarterly dividend
Civic engagement nonprofits say democracy needs support in between big elections. Do funders agree?
Selling weight-loss and muscle-building supplements to minors in New York is now illegal
5th person charged in killing of 2 Kansas moms, officials say
Sophia Bush Details “Heartbreak” of Her Fertility Journey