NOVEMBER 16, 2020 – FED CHAIR DELIVERS SOBERING NEWS
Both Pfizer and Moderna recently announced their Covid vaccines are delivering better than expected results, but the challenge will be how to roll out the vaccines to get the world back to a new normal; while last week, Fed Chair Jerome Powell spoke at a European Central Bank panel with ECB President Christine Lagarde and Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey.
Powell said an imminent vaccine is good news, but cautioned it will not necessarily bring back the kind of economy we have enjoyed over the last few years. The post-pandemic economy is going to be fundamentally different. He is worried about women, children and business owners who face long-term consequences as a result. One of Powell’s chief concerns is “longer-run damage to the productive capacity of the economy and to people’s lives who have been disrupted by the pandemic.”
Even though the economic data lately has been encouraging, which includes falling unemployment numbers, a new slowdown looms as virus cases rise and states look to reinstate restrictions. Powell cautioned the displaced workers are going to need extended support as the economy recovers in a way far differently than the recoveries of the past.