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Photo Credit: The Economic Club of Washington, D.C./Joshua Roberts

The Honorable Janet L. Yellen

Chair, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System | December 02, 2015
Record crowd of 800 gathered to hear Chair Yellen's analysis of the state of the U.S. economy.

At a luncheon meeting, The Honorable Janet Yellen, Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, addressed the largest audience ever gathered for an Economic Club Signature Event. Nearly 800 members and guests crowded into a packed room to listen to Dr. Yellen’s analysis of the state of the U.S. economy. Her review of economic factors presented a mostly positive picture, especially of the status of wage growth.

"Until recently, labor compensation had grown only modestly. More recently, however, we have seen a welcome pickup in the growth rate of average hourly earnings for all employees and of compensation per hour in the business sector,” she said. Most economic analysts predicted that Dr. Yellen’s remarks were a clear indication that the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates at its December meeting.

The speech, and Dr. Yellen’s following conversation with Club President David M. Rubenstein, was covered extensively by media with international reach. Media outlets from nine different countries – the U.S., Australia, China, France, Germany, Japan, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom – covered the event. Reporters, producers, cameramen and photographers present represented 15 television outlets, five news photography services, 48 print and online news sources, and two radio networks. The event was covered live on television by Bloomberg, CNBC, CNN, and Fox Business.

To view additional highlights and excerpts from the event, please click here.