ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)<br/> <br />STORY: New Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said on Tuesday the labor market recovery is "far from complete" despite a drop in unemployment, yet she said the U.S. central bank expects to continue trimming policy stimulus in measured steps due to broader improvements in the economy.<br/> <br />In her first public comments as Fed chief, Yellen, giving a balanced testimony to a House committee, nodded to the recent volatility in global financial markets, but said at this stage it does "not pose a substantial risk to the U.S. economic outlook."<br/> <br />She emphasized continuity in the Fed's approach to policy, saying she strongly supports the approach driven by her predecessor, Ben Bernanke.<br/> <br />While the unemployment rate has fallen by 1.5 percentage points since the latest bond-buying program began in September of 2012, at 6.6 percent the rate remains "well above levels" the Fed sees as consistent with maximum sustainable employment, Yellen said.
