Jerome Powell

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is making life tougher for his peers around the world as the prospect of higher-for-longer US interest rates reduces room for easier policy elsewhere. Powell on Tuesday signaled the Fed will wait longer than previously anticipated to cut borrowing costs following a series of surprisingly high inflation readings — marking a notable shift from his December pivot toward easing. Treasury yields reached fresh year-to-date highs and the dollar strengthened. For the central bank chiefs gathering from around the world in Washington for the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, Powell’s latest pivot creates a quandary. If the likes of the European Central Bank, Bank of England and Reserve Bank of Australia launch themselves into their own easing cycles, that risks driving their currencies down — raising import prices and undermining progress in getting inflation down. But not easing could risk growth.