Fed's Powell says he's willing to hike even at current inflation levels

Fed Governor Jerome Powell said the central bank will move rates higher when the data show that a hike is necessary, rather than waiting until its "goalposts" are in view.

The Fed's inflation target is 2 percent, though market-based measures of inflation are well below that. Still, Powell said survey-based measures of inflation have remained stable at around 1.5 percent.

(Reporting by Daniel Bases in New York, Michael Flaherty and Howard Schneider in Washington)