In his semiannual testimony before Congress, the Fed chair will hear from Democrats who want interest rate cuts to keep the economy humming and Republicans who want him to scrap capital requirement increases for big banks.

Minutes from late January show most FOMC members are more concerned about easing too soon than about damaging the economy through high rates.

The odds of a March interest rate cut have ebbed significantly, as Fed officials push back against market expectations for imminent and deep reductions this year.

As inflation heads to the 2% target, the Fed held rates steady for the third straight meeting, and officials predicted a series of cuts next year.

Chair Jerome Powell said this week: "Inflation pressures continue to run high, and the process of getting inflation back down to 2% has a long way to go."

"Central banks have become a source of macro volatility, rather than a dampener," says one economist.

They foresee slowing the pace of rate hikes in the near, while emphasizing that a 50 bps increase next month would still be significant.

Facing the hottest cost pressures in 40 years, policymakers have lifted the target for the federal funds rate by 1.5% over the past two months—the steepest increase since the price-fighting era of Paul Volcker in the early 1980s.