MNI (WASHINGTON) - Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Tuesday the surge of immigration into the U.S. in recent years will likely have a neutral impact on inflation over the long-run, but conceded it has likely contributed to some pressures on housing inflation in some areas. 

"My sense is that in the long run immigration is neutral on inflation. In the short run, they may actually have helped because the labor market got looser, because there are more people," Powell told Senate lawmakers on Capitol Hill. There are places in America where increased immigration is contributing to an already tight housing market, he said. "But, overall, in terms of the aggregate inflation, I wouldn't say it's a driver, one way or the other."

Powell said Tuesday that "more good data" could open the door to interest rate cuts, citing recent reports that show that the labor market and inflation are continuing to cool. (See: MNI POLICY: Fed Policy Looks Tight, Bolstering Case For Cuts)