1st LD: U.S. Fed chairman pledges to raise interest rates gradually

WASHINGTON, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told U.S. lawmakers on Tuesday that the central bank would continue to gradually raise interest rates.

"The U.S. economy grew at a solid pace over the second half of 2017 and into this year," said Powell in prepared remarks to the House Financial Services Committee.

Fed officials expect three interest rate hikes this year due to strong momentum in economic expansion, according to the semiannual Monetary Policy Report to the Congress released by the Fed last week.

Powell told lawmakers in his first monetary policy testimony that "gradually reducing monetary policy accommodation will sustain a strong labor market while fostering a return of inflation to 2 percent." Enditem