BlockBeats News, July 13th - Federal Reserve "Whisperer" Nick Timiraos wrote that last month, Powell, as Fed Chair, presided over his first meeting and the committee unanimously decided to keep rates unchanged. The consensus was easy to reach at the time as there was little willingness within the committee to take action. However, in the coming weeks, maintaining this consensus will become more challenging.

Some of Powell's colleagues are growing more concerned about inflation, and they may push for a discussion on raising rates during the Fed's July 28th to 29th meeting. This week, when testifying before Congress, Powell will have the opportunity to guide the formation of this consensus. At that time, he will have the latest inflation data for June—also the last batch of key data to be released before the meeting.