Kevin Warsh walked into his first Jackson Hole symposium as Federal Reserve Chair carrying a message markets did not entirely want to hear: the recent stretch of softer inflation prints does not mean the problem is solved.
Warsh delivered his inaugural keynote on August 28, 2026, roughly three months after assuming the chair on May 22. The audience had been watching closely, and the reaction was swift.
What Warsh actually said
The core of Warsh’s argument was skepticism. He told the assembled central bankers and economists that recent inflation data have not shown meaningful improvement in the underlying trend, a meaningful distinction from simply saying prices are falling.
July’s PCE reading came in at 3.3%, sitting well above the Fed’s 2% target. Warsh made clear that without genuine confidence in a sustained decline toward that target, the Fed retains both the willingness and the obligation to act.
