U.S. economy looks to be strengthening but is ‘far from complete,’ Fed Chair Powell says
The U.S. economy is “much improved,” Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Monday, crediting Congress and the central bank both for providing “unprecedented” support, but at the same time warning that the recovery is still “far from complete.”
“The recovery has progressed more quickly than generally expected and looks to be strengthening,” Powell said in remarks prepared for delivery to a congressional hearing on Tuesday morning. Household spending has risen, he said, and the housing sector has more than fully recovered.
“However, the sectors of the economy most adversely affected by the resurgence of the virus, and by greater social distancing, remain weak, and the unemployment rate — still elevated at 6.2% — underestimates the shortfall, particularly as labor market participation remains notably below pre-pandemic levels,” he said. “The recovery is far from complete, so, at the Fed, we will continue to provide the economy the support that it needs for as long as it takes.”
Powell’s prepared remarks hewed to the tone of cautious optimism he has struck in recent weeks amid indications that a recovery is gaining strength.
Powell calls cryptocurrencies ‘not really useful stores of value’ and says Fed will move slowly
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Monday that cryptocurrencies remain an unstable store of value and the central bank is no hurry to introduce a competitor.
“They’re highly volatile and therefore not really useful stores of value and they’re not backed by anything,” Powell said during a virtual panel discussion on digital banking hosted by the Bank for International Settlements. “It’s more a speculative asset that’s essentially a substitute for gold rather than for the dollar.”
Powell spoke on a day when bitcoin was down on Coinbase but still trading near $57,000 apiece. The cryptocurrency has soared in price over the past seven months amid a flurry in trading activity and growing acceptance in the financial industry.
Reference: CNBC
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