John C. Williams’ Speeches

Thank you. It’s a pleasure to participate in the 2012 Santa Barbara County Economic Summit. It’s especially nice for my Fed colleagues from other parts of the country to experience firsthand the beautiful scenery and wonderful weather that we Californians get to enjoy every day. In my presentation today, I’m going to sketch out the key factors shaping the economic recovery. I’ll then comment on the implications of these events for monetary policy. Before I get running, I should note that my remarks represent my own views and not those of others in the Federal Reserve System. Our economy is still […]

Thank you. It’s a particular pleasure to be with you this morning. We live in a rapidly changing and ever-more-competitive global economy. It’s vital that every region understand and leverage its special attributes and competitive advantages. SPUR has long been on the forefront of thinking about these questions for San Francisco. We’re very lucky to have such a far-sighted group working to keep our city successful. Of course, it’s not possible to make sense of what happens in the Bay Area without considering the larger economic environment in which we are situated. So this morning, I’m going to talk about that […]

Thank you. It’s a particular pleasure to be with you this morning. The subject of my talk today is the outlook for the economy and Federal Reserve policy. I’ll start with a look at the national economy, focusing on why the recent recession was so severe and why the recovery has been relatively anemic. I’ll then talk about prospects for growth, employment, and inflation. Finally, I’ll discuss what the Federal Reserve is doing to bolster the recovery. My remarks represent my own views and not those of others in the Federal Reserve System. Let me begin by saying that I’m encouraged […]

Thank you. It’s a pleasure to participate in this event and to enjoy the beauty and hospitality of the wonderful state of Hawaii. Sadly, this is my first visit here in 25 years. In fact, the last time I was here was back when I worked for a small business in the San Francisco Bay Area after I graduated from college. The business owner sent me on an all-expenses-paid, week-long vacation as a reward for hard work. Throughout my career at the Federal Reserve, I’ve tried to convince my bosses of the productivity-enhancing benefits of such an enlightened management practice. Unfortunately, […]

It’s a pleasure to participate in this year’s Monetary Policy Forum. I am particularly pleased to be discussing today’s paper. The authors have done an excellent job of analyzing and illuminating a key sector that has had profound effects on the economy, effects that policymakers have been wrestling with. I appreciate the opportunity to offer some thoughts on these issues. The paper makes a compelling case that the housing boom and bust are central for understanding both the depth of the recession and the slow recovery. Indeed, the housing bust has led to a persistent shortfall in aggregate demand, through a […]

Good evening and thank you for coming tonight. It is a great honor to be part of the Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum Lecture series. I saw that Allan Meltzer spoke at an Athenaeum luncheon a few weeks ago. Allan wrote what many consider to be the definitive history of the Fed. So, many of you have already embarked on an intensive course in money and banking this semester. I hope my remarks, on top of the wisdom you heard from Allan, will contribute to a better understanding of monetary policy. This evening, I’ll try to give you a real sense of […]

Good morning. I want to thank Alex and all of you for coming to the forum this morning. I get to travel all over the world to give talks, but I’ll admit it’s nice to be able to just jump in my car and not have to go through airport security and delays to be with you today. The subject of my talk is the economy and what the Federal Reserve is doing to encourage economic growth while keeping inflation low. This morning, I’ll review the events of recent years, with a special eye on how the boom and bust in […]

Good morning.  It’s a great pleasure to join you at The Columbian’s Economic Forecast Breakfast.  It’s amazing to think that Lewis and Clark came by here on their way to the Pacific Ocean just a little more than 200 years ago.  Of course, I arrived by plane and didn’t need Sacagawea to show me the way.  Yet, despite all the changes, this area is still majestic and truly a pleasure to visit. The subject of my talk is the economy and what the Federal Reserve is doing to encourage economic growth while keeping inflation low.  This morning, I’ll review the events […]

We are now nearly two-and-a-half years into the recovery from the worst U.S. recession in decades. The Federal Reserve has taken extraordinary actions during the past four years to stem what could have been a meltdown of the financial system and a horrific depression. These actions included several lender-of-last-resort programs aimed at alleviating liquidity shortfalls in the financial system. In addition, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) undertook a series of aggressive monetary policy actions aimed at stimulating the economy and avoiding deflation. It lowered the target federal funds rate nearly to zero in December 2008 and subsequently carried out purchases […]

Thank you.  It’s a pleasure to be with you in Phoenix this morning.  I must tell you though that I am a fervent San Francisco Giants fan, and I am still smarting from the way the Diamondbacks snatched the Western Division championship from us this year.  But you invited me here to speak about the economy and the Federal Reserve.  So I promise I’ll stick to my assigned subject for the rest of my remarks.  I should note that these remarks represent my own views and not necessarily those of others in the Federal Reserve System. The title of my talk […]