Chair Jerome Powell says the Federal Reserve will likely cut its key interest rate slowly and deliberately in the coming months, in part because inflation has shown signs of persistence and the Fed’s officials want to see where it heads next.

Indexes slipped as traders zeroed in on remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who said the central bank is in no hurry to cut rates amid a strong economy.

The Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell announced on November 14 that strong U.S. economic growth will allow policymakers to decide how fast to lower interest rates. Powell argues that the economy is not sending any signals that the Fed needs to be in any hurry to lower rates.