Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell announced Tuesday that central bank officials would accelerate interest-rate hikes if it cannot curb inflation in the months ahead.
“The process of getting inflation back down to 2% has a long way to go and is likely to be bumpy,” Powell said during the first of his two days of semiannual testimony to Congress, as per NBC News.
“If the totality of the data were to indicate that faster tightening is warranted, we would be prepared to increase the pace of rate hikes,” he added.
Users on the microblogging site Twitter have since come up with hilarious memes and comments in response to Powell’s speech.
One of them tweeted a meme in which Powell appears like iconic celebrity chef Salt Bae. In the caption, the user wrote, “Entire world’s financial markets depend on what this guy has to say. His dovish or hawkish talk signals drive prices insane. If aliens watch how our economy works they will be bedazzled, to say the least.”
#FederalReserve is the largest central bank in the world. It’s the US central bank with a GDP of roughly $25 trillion and debt of up to $32 trillion. US is already 130% debt-to-GDP ratio. It’s not sustainable at the current high FED interest rates reaching 5%+
The interest… https://t.co/ptbQf20Ymi pic.twitter.com/H3x2iMf3vj
— 🌋🌋 Deep₿lueCrypto 🌋🌋 (@DeepBlueCrypto) March 7, 2023
A meme page jokingly shared what the year 2030 may be like, noting that “the Federal reserve just hiked interest rates again to a total of 28.25%,” “the stock market has been flat for the last 7 years,” “crypto enthusiasts now fully switched to t-bill enthusiasts” and “ChatGPT is the president of the United States.”
The year is 2030:
– The Federal reserve just hiked interest rates again to a total of 28.25%
– The stock market has been flat for the last 7 years
– Crypto enthusiasts now fully switched to t-bill enthusiasts
– ChatGPT is the president of the United StatesLife is good.
— Wall Street Memes (@wallstmemes) March 7, 2023
A page called “Wall Street Silver” posted an edited video in which a person with Powell’s head can be seen walking forward as explosions take place behind him. “Uncle Jerome Powell just nuked the market,” the account said in the caption.
A user also shared a meme of an excavator dumping a load of mud onto a flatbed being pulled by the donkey, noting, “Powell puts 50 bp Fed rate hikes back on the table.”
Meanwhile, a Twitter page called “Not Jerome Powell,” which is known for writing parodies centered on the Federal Reserve chairman, said, “Hi everyone, I’m starting a weekly newsletter called F-ck the Fed. Please subscribe at the link below.” It shared a link to a Substack newsletter signup page that says, “F-ck the FED: Economic Inequality & the Monsterous Force Driving It.”
