Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh used his Jackson Hole speech Friday to answer critics of his muddled July press conference, delivering a clearer warning that stubborn inflation could push the Fed toward a rate hike.

Warsh's first pair of press conferences as Fed chairman left many in the markets uncertain about where he stood on the path of interest rates, prompting bond traders to sell off long-term debt to account for the uncertainty. At a closely watched speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming on Friday, Warsh showed he had heard those critics. He came as close as he is ever likely to do to indicating he is on the precipice of raising interest rates if inflation doesn't improve, based on his own idiosyncratic reading of price data.