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US Economic Chiefs Paint Bleak COVID Picture

Ken Bredemeier

   WASHINGTON - U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and Treasury
   chief Steven Mnuchin are painting a bleak picture of the economic
   devastation the coronavirus pandemic has wrought on the country, but
   they hold out hope that a raft of loans and assistance to families and
   businesses will provide relief in the coming months.

   Both are testifying Tuesday remotely before he Senate Banking
   Committee.

   Powell said in prepared remarks that the pandemic has caused "a level
   of pain that is hard to capture in words.

   "All of us are affected, but the burdens are falling most heavily on
   those least able to carry them," he said. "It is worth remembering that
   the measures taken to contain the virus represent an investment in our
   individual and collective health. As a society, we should do everything
   we can to provide relief to those who are suffering for the public
   good."

   The central bank chief said, "The scope and speed of this downturn are
   without modern precedent and are significantly worse than any recession
   since World War II." About 36.5 million U.S. workers have been laid off
   from jobs and have sought unemployment compensation as the world's
   largest economy has plunged into a recession.

   "This precipitous drop in economic activity has caused a level of pain
   that is hard to capture in words," Powell said, "as lives are upended
   amid great uncertainty about the future."

   The Fed lowered its benchmark interest rate to near zero in March.
   Powell promised that the Fed expects "to maintain interest rates at
   this level until we are confident that the economy has weathered recent
   events and is on track to achieve our maximum-employment and
   price-stability goals."

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