The Federal Reserve can stay patient and wait to see how tariffs and other economic policies of the Trump administration play out before making any changes to interest rates, Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday.

A run of strong economic data and signs that inflation remains stubbornly high could lead the Federal Reserve to raise its benchmark rate higher in the coming months than it has previously forecast, several Fed officials say.

Federal Reserve officials suggested at their most recent meeting that a continuing streak of robust hiring could keep inflation elevated and was a key reason why they expected to raise interest rates this year more than they had previously forecast.

The solid U.S. jobs report for October underscores why the Federal Reserve needs to raise interest rates higher than it had previously forecast to control inflation.

Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook says more interest rate increases will be necessary to wrestle inflation under control.

(AP Photo/Sait Serkan Gurbuz, File)LOS ANGELES Republican candidates eager for a turnaround in heavily Democratic California are spotlighting what they see as a dire threat to families and communities their own states policies. If Joe Biden says hes fighting for the soul of America, Republican candidates say they are fighting for the soul of California. Yet, in an election year that could produce a record Democratic turnout in California, Republican chances of gaining ground are uncertain at best. The California Republican Party was once a national powerhouse, and Orange County was a foundation block in the conservative revolution that sent the former California Gov. The numbers are witnessed at the ballot box: The GOP hasnt won a statewide election since 2006 and George H.W.