The economic downturn from the novel coronavirus pandemic is “without modern precedent” and “significantly worse than any recession” the U.S. has experienced since World War II, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told a Senate panel on Tuesday.
1,700 universities and colleges around the nation have asked the Federal Reserve to grant them access to the Main Street Lending Program, a program established last week to provide lending to small and medium-sized businesses that have been impacted by the Chinese virus pandemic.
Far more Americans are worried that inflation will go higher than are worried about unemployment going higher over the next 6 months.
The Federal Reserve latest meeting concluded with a statement emphasizing the Fed’s commitment to use all of its tools to support the economy.
The Fed said Thursday that it is activating a Main Street Business Lending Program authorized by the CARES Act, the largest economic relief package ever passed by Congress.
“This is a huge, unprecedented, devastating hit,” Yellen said. “My hope is that we will get back to business as quickly as possible.”
Demand for short-term Treasuries pushed yields on one and three-month bills negative Wednesday morning.
A Fed official warns that the U.S. could see unemployment rise to levels not seen since the Great Depression.
In an unprecedented expansion of its efforts to support the economy, the Fed moved aggressively to buy corporate and muni bonds and launched ‘QE Infinity.’
The coronavirus health crisis is quickly coming to resemble a financial crisis.
The Fed has launched a new facility to support the commercial paper market, an action that echoes moves made in the 2008 global financial crisis.
The Fed’s actions did not do anything to create calm in the futures market Sunday night. If anything, the Fed may have spooked investors.
“I congratulate the Federal Reserve. I think it’s terrific,” Trump said.
The Fed will deploy a new round of large scale bond purchases to combat the economic toll of the coronavirus.
The U.S. Federal Reserve announced Sunday evening that it would slash interest rates to near-zero and buy billions of dollars in bonds in an effort to protect the U.S. economy from the ongoing effects of the coronavirus outbreak.
The Fed is attempting to keep the financial system functioning smoothly as banks tighten grip on funding to fend off coronavirus threats.
The Fed’s survey of business around the country found increasing worries about the coronavirus and “political uncertainty.”
World Health Organization director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday that the “stigma” surrounding coronavirus was “more dangerous” than the illness itself, and advised people to “calm down.”
“The virus and the measures being taken to contain it will surely weigh on economic activity both here and abroad for some time,” Jerome Powell said.
The futures market now implies that there is a 100% chance the Fed will cut rates by 50 basis points by the end of the next meeting.
In a rare unscheduled statement, Fed chair Powell sent a signal to financial markets that the Fed is taking the coronavirus threat seriously.
The futures implied odds of a rate cut in next month’s Fed meeting jumped to more than 70 percent on Thursday morning.
The Fed said recently that it believes its current target will remain appropriate for the foreseeable future. The market disagrees.
Coronavirus fears have sent investors fleeing to the safety of U.S. Treasury bonds, pushing yields to record lows.
The bond market and President Trump agree: the Fed should cut rates.
Powell added that the Fed is “very carefully monitoring the situation.”
The Federal Reserve left the target interest rate unchanged at a range of 1.50 to 1.75 percent.
Inflation has been slowing down for the last two months, suggesting that the Fed will not hike rates this year.
Manufacturing and overall industrial output improved, with sharp upticks in autos, business equipment, and consumer goods.
Capital spending and technology spending plans rose in December, suggesting strength ahead for manufacturing
The New York Fed is getting ready for a possible liquidity crunch at the end of the year.
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday left interest rates unchanged and dropped its forecast for a rate hike next year.
The world’s greatest inflation fighter has died.
Business investment rebounded, easing fears that the manufacturing sector would continue to slowdown into year end.
President Donald Trump on Monday confirmed he met Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell at the White House to discuss monetary policy.
Stocks moved higher despite impeachment inquiry, China trade deal worries, and Fed chair Powell standing pat.
Uncertainty over trade policy is not likely to be the primary cause of depressed business investment in the U.S.
“We should have lower interest rates than Germany, Japan and all others,” Trump tweeted on Thursday morning.
Fed chair Jerome Powell cut rates and promised he would only hike if inflation posed a significant threat.
The Fed delivered the quarter-point cut that the market expected on Wednesday.
