US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has suggested that two more rate hikes are likely by the end of this year.

The US central bank chief said that "inflation has moderated somewhat since the middle of last year" as he testified before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday. He added, "Nonetheless, inflation pressures continue to run high, and the process of getting inflation back down to two percent has a long way to go."

Earlier this month, policymakers at the Federal Reserve decided to hold its key interest rate steady for the first time since it started raising rates in March last year. But they also suggested there could be two more rate hikes this year.

Powell said that 16 of the 18 participants at the meeting believe it would be appropriate to raise rates. He also said that "a big majority" believes it is necessary to raise rates twice more by the end of the year.

He said, "I think that's a pretty good guess of what will happen if the economy performs about as expected".

The Fed chief also pointed out that labor demand still substantially exceeds the supply of workers.