Jerome Powell Nominated To Retain His US FED Leadership

Jerome Powell has been nominated for a second term as chair of the US Federal Reserve by President Joe Biden. Mr Powell is set to stay in the role, which includes managing inflation and regulating the financial system, for a further four years.

He was initially appointed by former President Donald Trump and started his first term in 2018. The 68-year-old Republican has been praised for his management of the economy during the pandemic. The other front-running candidate, Lael Brainard, was favoured by progressives on the left of President Biden's Democratic Party.

They have criticised Mr Powell for not doing enough to tackle climate change and say he has weakened the regulation of financial institutions. Ms Brainard, who has been on the board of governors of the Federal Reserve since 2014, has been nominated as vice-chair.

Announcing the nominations, President Biden said: "While there's still more to be done, we've made remarkable progress over the last 10 months in getting Americans back to work and getting our economy moving again.

"That success is a testament to the economic agenda I've pursued and to the decisive action that the Federal Reserve has taken under Chair Powell and Dr Brainard to help steer us through the worst downturn in modern American history and put us on the path to recovery."

The nominations need to be confirmed in the Senate but that process is expected to go smoothly with Republicans and most Democrats likely to back them. Mr Biden said he was confident that Mr Powell and Ms Brainard would focus on tackling inflation, but also shared his belief that urgent action was needed to tackle climate change and risks to the financial system.

President Biden's government is coming under increasing pressure as prices continue to rise for everyday goods, eating into ordinary Americans' spending power. Last month, consumer price inflation reached 6.2%, defying predictions, including from Mr Powell, that it would come quickly back under control once the economy reopened.

The Federal Reserve has primary responsibility for managing inflation but the issue is also affecting the president's own poll ratings, according to a poll for CBS published this weekend. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said having an independent and experienced Federal reserve was "critically important to navigating this turbulent time".

















SOURCE:BBC
IMAGE SOURCE: PIXABAY