Jamie Dimon, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), delivered a speech at the Economic Club of New York in Manhattan, New York City, USA on April 23, 2024.
Fresh Mike | Reuters
JPMorgan Chase Chief Executive Jamie Dimon said on Tuesday that he would not rule out stagflation, despite growing confidence recently that inflation is moving away from highs.
“I would say the worst outcome is stagflation – a recession, rising inflation,” Dimon said at the fall meeting of the Council of Institutional Investors in Brooklyn, New York. “I’m not taking that off the table, by the way.”
The comments from the chief executive of the largest U.S. bank come as investors turn their attention to signs of slowing economic growth. Recent data has shown increasing pressure on prices as the Federal Reserve reaches its 2% inflation target, but employment and manufacturing reports have shown some signs of weakness.
Investors will get some additional key data this week, with the Consumer Price Index and Producer Price Index due out on Wednesday and Thursday respectively.
But Dimon worries that a looming set of inflationary forces, such as rising deficits and increased infrastructure spending, will continue to weigh on an economy still reeling from high interest rates.
“They’re both inflationary, basically in the short term, several years into the future,” Dimon said. “So, it’s ugly [it] And said, “Well, no, we’re out of the woods.” I don’t think so.
The bank leader has previously warned of an economic slowdown. In August, he said the chance of a “soft landing” was about 35% to 40%, meaning a recession was more likely.
