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<p>Customers buying up tea before the price rise, Brisbane,&nbsp;Australia, 1954 (via <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:StateLibQld_1_114936_Customers_buying_up_tea_before_the_price_rise,_Brisbane,_1954.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a>)</p>

One part of the Fed's dual mandate is price stability. Price stability means that inflation remains low and stable over the longer run.


Paul Volcker prior to appearing on the Senate Banking Committee Panel in 1979
Fed’s Anti-Inflation Actions

In 1979, Fed Chairman Paul Volcker announced new anti-inflation measures

May 9, 1979:&nbsp;Cars line up outside a filling station on the first day of gas rationing imposed on nine California counties&nbsp;following the revolution in Iran that caused a shortage of crude oil.
Oil Shock of 1978-79

The second oil shock of the 1970s was associated with events in the Middle East

Sign reading "Gas shortage! Sales limited to 10 gallons of gas per customer" posted at a&nbsp;Connecticut filling station during the energy crisis
Oil Shock of 1973-74

An oil embargo in the early 1970s complicated the U.S. macroeconomic environment

President Nixon prepares to announce new economic policies on a television broadcast.
Gold Convertibility Ends

President Nixon's 1971 economic plan, sometimes referred to as "Nixonomics," ended gold convertibility and imposed wage and price controls

Close-up of a&nbsp;"Whip Inflation Now"&nbsp;[WIN] button,&nbsp;President Ford's symbol of the fight against inflation.
Great Inflation

The defining macroeconomic period of the second half of the 20th century lasted from 1965 to 1982

Roy A. Young of the Boston Fed tells the Senate banking committee on January 19, 1933 that President Roosevelts gold plan would be helpful in reaching currency stabilization.
Roosevelt’s Gold Program

The controversial and consequential policies of FDR regarding gold and dollars