Treasury secretary says she doesn’t think a recession is ‘inevitable’

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Sunday that she doesn’t think a “recession is inevitable,” although she does expect the economy to slow. 

“I expect the economy to slow,” Yellen told moderator George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s “This Week.” “It’s been growing at a very rapid rate. … The labor market has recovered, and we have reached full employment.” 

“It’s natural now that we expect a transition to steady and stable growth,” Yellen added. 

Yellen stressed that the top priority of President Biden and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is to bring inflation down while maintaining a strong labor market, adding that she doesn’t think a recession will happen. 

“That’s going to take skill and work,” she said. “But I believe it’s possible. I don’t think recession is inevitable.” 

Biden also said on Thursday that he believes a recession is “not inevitable” in remarks one day after the Federal Reserve announced it would hike interest rates at the fastest pace in nearly 30 years.

“First of all, it’s not inevitable,” Biden told The Associated Press. “Secondly, we’re in a stronger position than any nation in the world to overcome this inflation.”

Yellen on Sunday also stressed that consumer spending remains strong, though there are some concerns over high fuel and energy prices. 

“There’s month-to-month volatility, but overall spending is strong, although patterns of spending are changing and higher food and energy prices are certainly affecting consumers and making them change their patterns of spending,” Yellen said.