'There's nothing fundamentally wrong with our economy, quite the contrary,' Federal Reserve Chairman Powell tells TODAYShow, while acknowledging that 'We may well be in a recession.'
as part of a series of emergency measures to shore up the economy that has been ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Fed said such extreme action was warranted because"the coronavirus outbreak has harmed communities and disrupted economic activity in many countries, including the United States." By making borrowing as cheap as possible, the central bank hopes to give companies and Americans ready access to nearly interest-free cash to invest and spend.
"We're trying to make a bridge," Powell said Thursday, by stepping in and replacing lending"to places where credit is not being offered." "We're not experts in pandemics. But the sooner we get the virus under control, people will very willingly open back up their businesses and get back to work."
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