Climate Protestors Disrupt Fed Chair Powell at IMF Talk on the US Economy

A heckling protestor disrupted a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Thursday, warning that the Fed was courting "economic disaster" by ignoring climate change.

Powell was speaking during a panel discussion at an International Monetary Fund event in Washington, D.C.

Someone could be heard off camera saying, "Shut the f---ing door," before the live feed was interrupted and video cut out. It was unclear who made the comment.

"Jerome Powell, by refusing to treat climate change like the systemic risk that it is you are putting us at risk of economic disaster," the protestor shouted, according to the livestream posted by the IMF.

The video resumed about five minutes later, after the protestor was removed from the venue.

The interruption marks the second time Powell has been interrupted by climate protests over the past several weeks.

On Oct. 19, protestors stormed the stage at the Economic Club of New York holding a banner that read “Fed Is Burning: Money, Futures, Planet” and chanting “end fossil finance." The Fed chairman, who was scheduled to give a speech on monetary policy, was escorted from the room and spoke roughly 15 minutes later, according to The Guardian. 

On to the economy, Powell said the central bank will not be mislead by encouraging data in deciding interest rates.

"We will continue to move carefully," he said, "allowing us to address both the risk of being misled by a few good months of data, and the risk of over tightening."

On Nov. 1, the Fed decided to hold its key interest rate at a 22-year high — where policymakers have let it stand since July. The central bank's Federal Open Market Committee has raised rates 11 times since March 2022 to 5.25% to 5.5%.

"We are making decisions meeting-by-meeting, based on the totality of the incoming data and their implications for the outlook for economic activity and inflation, as well as the balance of risks, determining the extent of additional policy firming that may be appropriate to return inflation to 2%over time," Powell said.

Several Fed officials have echoed the sentiment that rate hike decisions are data dependent and that they're content to see how well the hikes they've made so far will tame inflaton. Other Fed officials have said rates could still go higher if inflation doesn't come down to the Fed's 2% target.

"It would be unwise to suggest that further rate hikes are off the table," Kathleen O’Neill Paese, interim president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, said in a speech earlier in the day.

Inflation has declined precipitously since hitting a peak of over 9% in June 2022, but it was still 3.7% as measured by the consumer price index in September. Data for CPI in October will be released Nov. 14.

"I’m optimistic that we can and will achieve price stability, but we’re not quite there yet and we should not declare victory and release the monetary brake prematurely," O'Neill Paese said.

Growth came in at nearly 5% in the third quarter and the labor market that while weakening remains strong with an unemployment rate of 3.9%, near historic lows.

Fed Governor Michelle Bowman, who has said another rate hike may be needed emphasized that the economy remains uncertain in a speech, also on Thursday.

"We don't yet know the effects of tightened financial conditions on economic activity and inflation," she said. "There is an unusually high level of uncertainty regarding the economy and my own economic outlook, especially considering recent surprises in the data, data revisions, and ongoing geopolitical risks."

William Gavin contributed to this report.