When Theodore Roosevelt encouraged policymakers to “speak softly and carry a big stick,” clearly, his target audience was not central bankers. Chairman Powell’s speech was significant because its message was precisely counter to what markets started to price in since mid-June.

Measures of inflation breadth (how many items are seeing big jumps in prices) and stickiness (those items that tend to see slower price changes) remain elevated. This makes the Fed’s job difficult, as it points to a long journey to get back towards 2%.