Yellen ‘probably done’ by the time Biden finishes term, could meet Chinese counterpart soon

By David Lawder

(Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Saturday she was “probably done” serving at the highest levels of government after President Joe Biden’s term ends in January, but would likely meet her Chinese counterpart again soon.

Asked at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Texas, whether she was “done” when a new administration takes office in January, or whether she might continue in her job or take on a new administrative role, Yellen said: “Probably done, but … we’ll see.”

The comments are the closest Janet Yellen, 78, has come to announcing her future plans as the presidential race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump heats up. Yellen is the first woman to serve as Treasury secretary, Federal Reserve chair and director of the White House National Economic Council.

Yellen said at the Austin event that she still has a lot of work to do at Treasury in the coming months, including another likely meeting with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, her counterpart in Beijing, to try to manage an often tense relationship.

The two men met in April in Beijing, where Yellen warned China to rein in its excess industrial capacity ahead of Biden’s decision to impose steep tariff increases on Chinese-made electric vehicles, batteries, solar products and semiconductors.

Yellen said she would welcome a visit to the United States, but could also return to China herself, adding: “I think we will have, one way or another, a visit.”

Treasury Deputy Secretary Jay Shambaugh will lead a delegation to Beijing “very soon” to discuss economic issues. Shambaugh leads a U.S.-China economic task force that has made combating Chinese industrial overproduction a priority.

Yellen said the U.S.-China relationship “must be prioritized and nurtured” by the next U.S. administration, with discussions at the highest levels and among agency staff.

“We have enough differences, and without an opportunity to discuss them and put them in context, it’s certainly possible that tensions will escalate,” Yellen said. “So this is an issue that needs continued attention. I hope we can get there.”

“SOLID ECONOMY”

Yellen also said the U.S. economy had largely reached a “soft landing” with lower inflation after U.S. jobs data for August on Friday showed a slight decline in the unemployment rate despite a slowdown in hiring.

“When you see the pace of job creation declining over time, what I like to see is that it stabilizes at about the current level, and we have to be careful that it doesn’t decline further,” Yellen said.

She said consumer spending remains “fairly strong” and that while there is “less of a frenzy” in hiring, there have been no significant layoffs.

“I’m currently mindful of the downside risks on the jobs side, but I think what we’re seeing and what we’re going to continue to see is a good, strong economy,” Yellen said.

(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Diane Craft and David Gregorio)