Janet Yellen seals success as market's therapist

JANET Yellen's final act as chair of the US Federal Reserve on Wednesday was a subtle change of tone on inflation, a finesse that epitomised her slow and steady approach to getting the economic world back to normal.

If Ms Yellen's predecessor, Ben Bernanke, was the surgeon who performed a massive operation to save his patient, Ms Yellen was the physiotherapist who nudged the patient back onto his feet and gently encouraged him to get back to life as it was before.

In her final statement before handing over the reins to Jerome Powell, her rate-setting committee warned of rising inflation expectations.

The statement also offered a more modest assessment of economic prospects than the ros…