Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase (JPM), speaks at the Economic Club of Manhattan, New York City, USA, on April 23, 2024.
Mike Seeger | Reuters
JPMorgan Chase Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon said Tuesday that he would not rule out the possibility of stagflation, despite recent growing confidence that inflation is declining from record levels.
“The worst outcome is stagflation – recession and rising inflation,” Dimon said at the Institute of Institutional Investors’ fall conference in Brooklyn, N.Y. “I wouldn’t rule that out, by the way.”
The CEO of the nation’s largest bank made the comments at a time when investors are beginning to focus on signs of slowing economic growth. Recent data has shown price pressures building toward the Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation target, but reports on employment and manufacturing have shown some signs of easing.
Investors will get some additional important data this week with the release of the Consumer Price Index and Producer Price Index on Wednesday and Thursday.
But Dimon worries that a series of near-term inflationary factors, including a widening budget deficit and increased infrastructure spending, will continue to put added pressure on an economy still struggling with the effects of rising interest rates.
“Basically, it’s going to be inflationary in the short term over the next few years,” Dimon said. “So, [it] And you’ll say, ‘No, we’re out of the woods.’ I don’t think so.”
He has previously warned of an economic slowdown, saying in August that the chances of a “soft landing” were about 35 to 40 percent, suggesting a recession was more likely.
