耶倫證詞顯示出的五點不同

The main takeaway from Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen's testimony before the Senate Banking Committee was that central bank policy is on cruise control until officials get a better read on the economy's performance. The Fed will continue to gradually reduce its monthly bond purchases unless officials decide the economy has slowed substantially. A recent spate of bad weather in parts of the country make it hard to form a judgment now, Ms. Yellen said.

從美國聯邦儲備委員會(Federal Reserve，簡稱：美聯儲)主席耶倫(Janet Yellen)在參議院銀行委員會(Senate Banking Committee)的證詞主要可以看出的一點是，在官員們對美國經濟的表現有更清晰的瞭解之前，美聯儲的政策處於“定速巡航模式”。在官員們認爲經濟已大幅放緩之前，美聯儲將繼續逐步縮減其每月購債規模。耶倫說，近期美國部分地區連續遭遇惡劣天氣，因此現在還難以做出判斷。

Here are five other takeaways that don't involve the weather:

從耶倫的證詞中還可以得出以下五點與天氣無關的內容：

#1: There is distance between Ms. Yellen and the White House

1、耶倫和白宮在一些問題上看法不同

She subtly pushed back at the White House, which criticized a recent Congressional Budget Office report on raising the minimum wage. The CBO report said the White House proposal to increase it to $10.10 would lift 900,000 people out of poverty, but lead to the elimination of 500,000 other jobs. Republicans said the report showed the proposal was a bad idea. The White House said CBO overstated the job losses and its view didn't represent the consensus among economists. Ms. Yellen contradicted that argument. The CBO 'is as qualified as anyone to evaluate the literature,' she said. 'I wouldn't want to argue with their assessment.'

對於白宮批評國會預算辦公室(Congressional Budget Office)最近一份有關上調最低工資的報告，她巧妙地反駁了白宮。國會預算辦公室的報告稱，如果按白宮提議的那樣將最低時薪上調至10.10美元，將有90萬人擺脫貧困，但會導致另外50萬個就業崗位被裁。共和黨議員說，這份報告顯示出白宮的提案是個壞主意。白宮則說，國會預算辦公室誇大了就業崗位的喪失，它的看法不代表經濟學家的普遍看法。耶倫反駁了白宮的這一說法。她說，國會預算辦公室和任何人一樣有資格評估這份報告。如果是我，我不會對他們的評估進行爭論。

#2: There is distance between Ms. Yellen and Senate Democrats

2、耶倫和參議院民主黨議員在一些問題上看法不同

Sen. Jack Reed (D., R.I.) pressed Ms. Yellen to comment on whether Congress should pursue fiscal stimulus, as many Democrats want. Ms. Yellen didn't take the bait and instead stuck to her predecessor Ben Bernanke's line. Fiscal policy has been a 'substantial drag' on the economy in the short-run, she said. The Fed does indeed want less fiscal restraint in the short-run. But she wouldn't endorse fiscal stimulus without some effort to rein-in long-run budget deficits. 'There are substantial long-term budget issues,' she said. At a minimum, she urged both parties, 'do no harm.'

羅德島州民主黨參議員裏德(Jack Reed)要求耶倫就國會是否應該像很多民主黨議員希望的那樣尋求財政刺激措施發表看法。耶倫沒有上鉤，而是堅持了她的前任貝南克(Ben Bernanke)的立場。她說，短期來看，財政政策對經濟造成相當大的拖累。短期內，美聯儲確實希望減少財政限制。但如果沒有一些控制長期預算赤字的措施，她不會支持實施財政刺激政策。她說，長期預算問題相當可觀。她敦促兩黨至少不要造成損害。

#3: There is distance between Ms. Yellen and Mr. Bernanke

3、耶倫和貝南克在一些問題上看法不同

She departed slightly from him on the question of whether the Fed's low interest rate policies of the 2000s contributed to the housing bubble. Mr. Bernanke has argued they didn't. Instead, he has said an influx of foreign capital into the U.S. spurred a housing boom and lax regulation allowed it to get out of control. Ms. Yellen said she 'would not argue' with other economists who believe low rates contributed to the buildup of leverage in the financial system in the 2000s and a housing bubble. If she thinks low rates helped cause the bubble, she might be willing to raise rates if she sees a new bubble emerging.

至於美聯儲在21世紀前10年實施的低利率政策是否助漲了樓市泡沫，耶倫的看法與貝南克稍有不同。貝南克認爲，低利率政策沒有加劇樓市泡沫。他說，是大量流入美國的外資引發了樓市大幅增長，鬆懈的監管使樓市增長失去了控制。耶倫則說，對於那些認爲21世紀前10年實施的低利率政策助推了金融體系內的槓桿積聚和樓市泡沫的經濟學家，她不會和他們爭論。如果她認爲低利率是造成樓市泡沫的原因之一，當她看到新的泡沫出現時，她可能會加息。

#4: There is distance between Ms. Yellen and bitcoin

4、耶倫和比特幣有一定距離

Yellen said the Fed doesn't have authority to regulate bitcoin. If there is fraud or money laundering involved, she suggested, it is an issue the Justice Department would need to look at. She said, however, the Fed has been looking at bitcoin to figure out what role, if any, the central bank had to play in this world of emerging online currency.

耶倫說，美聯儲沒有監管比特幣的權力。她表示，如果涉及到欺詐或洗錢，則屬於美國司法部應該介入的問題。不過，她說，美聯儲一直在研究比特幣，以便弄清楚美聯儲是否應該介入新興的虛擬貨幣世界，如果介入，它需要扮演什麼角色。

#5: There is distance between Ms. Yellen and past Fed practices

5、耶倫和美聯儲以往的做法有一定距離

Pressed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) for more transparency on the regulatory front, Ms. Yellen said the Fed was moving in that direction. The Fed rarely holds public votes on issues such as its enforcement actions taken against banks, Ms. Warren noted. 'You have raised a very important question,' Ms. Yellen said. 'I do think it is appropriate for us to make changes and I fully expect that we will.'

馬薩諸塞州民主黨參議員沃倫(Elizabeth Warren)要求增加監管層面的透明度，耶倫說，美聯儲正在朝着這個方向努力。耶倫指出，美聯儲很少就針對銀行採取的執法行動等事宜進行公開投票。耶倫說，你提出了一個非常重要的問題。我確實認爲我們應該做出調整，對此我充滿期待。

Bottom line: Ms. Yellen showed, in her willingness to veer from others' views on a number of these questions that she is starting in subtle ways to carve out her own path as the central bank's leader.

總而言之，耶倫願意在一些問題上保持與其他人不同的看法，她由此顯示出，作爲美聯儲主席她正在開始以微妙的方式開闢自己的道路。