Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the U.S. economic recovery still hasn’t progressed enough to begin scaling back the central bank’s massive monthly asset purchases, while adding that inflation is likely to remain high in coming months before moderating.

“At our June meeting, the committee discussed the economy’s progress toward our goals since we adopted our asset purchase guidance last December,” Powell said Wednesday in remarks prepared for delivery before the House Financial Services Committee. “While reaching the standard of ‘substantial further progress’ is still a ways off, participants expect that progress will continue.”

The hearing to present the Fed’s semi-annual Monetary Policy Report to Congress is scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. Washington time. Powell addresses the Senate banking panel on Thursday.

U.S. central bankers are providing aggressive support by holding interest rates near zero and buying $120 billion of bonds a month, even as the economy shows strong growth. Job gains have been solid and inflation has jumped, though officials say that’s due to temporary supply glitches as the economy reopens from the pandemic.

Ten-year Treasuries held earlier gains with yields around 1.37% following the release of Powell’s remarks. U.S. stock futures were higher and the dollar softened.

Critics say that ultra-easy monetary policy alongside massive government spending is overheating the economy. Government data released on Tuesday showed prices paid by U.S. consumers surged in June by the most since 2008 and were up 5.4% from the same month last year.

“Strong demand in sectors where production bottlenecks or other supply constraints have limited production has led to especially rapid price increases for some goods and services, which should partially reverse as the effects of the bottlenecks unwind,” Powell said. “Prices for services that were hard hit by the pandemic have also jumped in recent months as demand for these services has surged with the reopening of the economy.”

Powell noted that asset prices and risk appetite have risen while downplaying any near-term risks to the economy from financial markets.

“Household balance sheets are, on average, quite strong, business leverage has been declining from high levels, and the institutions at the core of the financial system remain resilient,” he said.

Powell’s remarks before Congress this week are his last semi-annual testimony before President Joe Biden decides whether to give him another four years at the Fed helm or pick someone else. Powell’s tenure as chair expires in February.

The Fed’s policy patience is part of a new framework it announced nearly a year ago that pledged to achieve an average of 2% inflation over time and not pre-judge the level of maximum employment. Fed officials in June started a conversation about when to begin scaling back their asset purchases.

Forecasts released by Fed officials last month also showed them pulling the timing of interest rate liftoff forward, with two increases penciled in for 2023, a move that pushed some market measures of inflation expectations lower.

“Measures of longer-term inflation expectations have moved up from their pandemic lows and are in a range that is broadly consistent with the FOMC’s longer-run inflation goal,” Powell said, referring to the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee.

Fed officials last month signaled their view of risk and uncertainty around inflation had risen, according to their forecasts.

Powell emphasized in his prepared remarks that the labor market recovery was still far from complete.

“Conditions in the labor market have continued to improve, but there is still a long way to go,” “Powell said. “Job gains should be strong in coming months as public health conditions continue to improve and as some of the other pandemic-related factors currently weighing them down diminish.”

He added that despite “substantial improvements” for racial and ethnic groups, “the hardest-hit groups still have the most ground left to regain.”

The U.S. economy added 850,000 jobs in June, the biggest monthly increase since August. Still, broader measures of labor-market slack indicate it is still short of the Fed’s mandate of maximum employment. The jobless rate for Black workers stood at 9.2% compared to 6% in February 2020.

The overall unemployment rate has fallen to 5.9% from a pandemic peak of 14.8% with high rates of churn in industries facing strong demand such as retail and hospitality. Prior to the pandemic, the unemployment rate stood at 3.5% in February 2020 while the 12-month change in inflation was 1.8%, according to the Fed’s preferred measure, the personal consumption expenditures price index.

This article was provided by Bloomberg News.