in a speech in Atlanta Bernanke said that the recent rise in commodity prices will likely be "transitory: and prices will fall back. He went on to say though that the Fed must be watched "extremely closely," encouraging bets that interest rates may be raised sooner than previously expected. The remark that commodity prices and energy prices will back down is somewhat surprising although he couched it with the famous comment that the Fed will watch and react accordingly if inflation creeps into end prices. Bernanke's comments echoed his March 1 statement to law makers that Fed officials were "prepared to respond as necessary" to inflationary pressures. The Federal Open Market Committee, said following its March 15 meeting that it "will pay close attention" to the evolution of inflation and inflation expectations.