The US Senate was set to confirm Jerome Powell for a second term as head of the Federal Reserve on Thursday, as the central bank works to crush rising inflation.
The vote will come as inflation has hit a 40-year high, fueled by the conflict in Ukraine and sanctions imposed on Russia, as well as Covid-19 sanctions in China, which have raised concerns that a global supply snarl could worsen.
Powell, a Republican with broad bipartisan support, has continued at the helm of the central bank, although his first term officially ended on February 4.
Her confirmation was delayed to allow Lisa Cook to join the Fed board – the first black woman to serve in office – which was confirmed Tuesday with only Democratic votes to spare.
The vote on Powell comes on the day the upper house of Congress approved the nomination of Davidson College’s Philip Jefferson, the first time the Fed board has had more than one black governor.
US President Joe Biden, whose popularity has been fueled by rising inflation and record gasoline prices, has repeatedly said that tackling the issue is primarily a task for the Fed.
“I put forward highly qualified candidates to lead that institution, and I urge the Senate to confirm them without delay,” he said Tuesday.
Powell led the central bank as it slashed the benchmark interest rate to zero at the start of the pandemic in March 2020 and pumped money into the financial system to prevent a severe recession in the world’s largest economy, and now to ease price pressures. overseeing the efforts. Affecting American families.
The Fed last week announced its biggest rate hike since 2000 and indicated that similar increases are likely in the coming months.
The challenge for Powell and the Fed is to turn down the heat on inflation without putting the United States into recession, but they have expressed confidence that the economy is strong enough to withstand tighter monetary policy.
With the latest additions, the Fed board will be just one smaller than its full complement of seven governors.
Cook and Jefferson have researched inequality in the labor market.
Powell has repeatedly stressed the importance of expanding economic opportunities to disadvantaged groups – a remarkable change of focus in an economy where black workers face far higher unemployment rates than other racial groups.
Cook, a professor of economics and international relations at Michigan State University, has focused her research on how discrimination harms the American economy and harms the poor.
Jefferson, who is also an economics professor, is only the fourth black person to serve as Fed governor.
This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed.