Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned that the nation's unemployment rate could soar to 25 percent during the worst of the pandemic
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Sunday warned that the nation's unemployment rate could soar to 25 percent during the worst of the coronavirus crisis, though he said the economy should recover more quickly than during the Great Depression, when joblessness last reached those levels.on CBS’ “60 Minutes” after reporter Scott Pelley asked whether unemployment could reach 20 percent or even 25 percent.
The Fed chief expressed hope that the economy would come out of recession in the second half of the year, but cautioned that a second outbreak of the coronavirus could derail that path. “This economy will recover,” he said. “We'll get through this. It may take a while. ... It could stretch through the end of next year. We really don't know.”
The central bank has taken extraordinary measures to rescue the economy since the pandemic began sweeping through the country — slashing interest rates to zero, rolling out trillions of dollars in lending programs for financial markets, and taking the unprecedented step of bailing out state and city governments.
"There's really no limit to what we can do with these lending programs," Powell said. "There's a lot more we can do to support the economy, and we're committed to doing everything we can as long as we need to."
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Report: Feds, States Prepping Antitrust Lawsuits Against GoogleI’m a San Francisco-based reporter covering breaking news at Forbes. I’ve previously reported for USA Today, Business Insider, The San Francisco Business Times and San Jose Inside. I studied journalism at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and was an editor at The Daily Orange, the university’s independent student newspaper. Follow me on Twitter rachsandl or shoot me an email rsandlerforbes.com.
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