Economics

Jerome Powell Says Better Outlook Reflects Vaccine Progress, Fiscal Aid

  • Fed chair gives Congress bulk of credit for brighter outlook
  • Central bank will only ‘very gradually’ withdraw help: Powell

Photographer: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg

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Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell​ said the U.S. central bank would wait until the economy has “all but fully recovered” to pull back the extraordinary monetary support it rolled out in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“As we make substantial further progress toward our goals, we’ll gradually roll back the amount of Treasury and mortgage-backed securities we’re buying. And then in the longer run, we’ve set out a test that will enable us to raise interest rates,” Powell said Thursday in an interview on National Public Radio’s Morning Edition show.