联邦储备委员会主席杰罗姆·鲍威尔周三敦促国会介入,并为冠状病毒大流行提供进一步的经济援助。
鲍威尔星期三在一次电话会议上说,由于美国对冠状病毒的反应,美国经济可能遭受永久性损害。
立法者已经通过了旨在帮助美国个人直接支付现金的经济救助计划,并且一个项目开始向小企业提供贷款,以保持雇员的工资。鲍威尔周三的言论暗示,这些措施不足以支撑美国经济。
鲍威尔在彼得森国际经济研究所举办的一次活动中表示:“尽管经济反应既及时又适度,但这可能不是最后一章,因为未来的道路非常不确定,而且面临重大下行风险。由于答案目前尚不可知,政策需要准备好应对一系列可能的结果。”
各州政府发布的在家办公令导致的企业倒闭,导致美国4月份失业率升至14.7%,为大萧条以来的最高水平。据报道,超过2700万美国人失业。
美国联邦储备委员会主席杰罗姆·鲍威尔星期三说,需要国会提供更多援助,以防止冠状病毒大流行对美国经济造成永久性损害。
共和党参议院多数党领袖米奇·麦康奈尔(Mitch McConnell)表示,他的政党并不急于开始制定另一个刺激方案,他在周三表示,美国“无法借入足够的资金来永远支撑经济。”
民主党人已经公布了下一个冠状病毒刺激方案,该方案将耗资3万亿美元。提案中包括第二批直接付款,金额为1200美元,用于符合条件的美国人。
众议院议长南希·佩洛西鼓励其他议员对该提案迅速采取行动。“租金不会暂停,”佩洛西周二说。“失去工作或失去爱人的痛苦不会停止。”
新闻周刊联系参议员麦康奈尔和议长佩洛西的办公室寻求评论。这个故事会随着任何回应而更新。
一些共和党人拒绝了新的提议,而是希望等到可以对之前的方案如何影响美国经济进行评估。共和党议员也强调了重新开放国家业务的重要性,尽管卫生官员警告说,各州过快放松冠状病毒缓解措施可能导致另一波感染。
美国国家过敏和传染病研究所所长安东尼·福奇博士周二对参议院表示,如果各州试图在冠状病毒检测上偷工减料,“而没有能力做出有效和高效的反应,我担心的是我们将开始看到可能演变成疾病爆发的小高峰。”
最近的数据显示,美国报告了1423884例冠状病毒阳性病例。随着病毒检测能力在美国的扩展,阳性病例的数量预计会增加。
FED CHIEF WARNS CORONAVIRUS COULD PERMANENTLY DAMAGE ECONOMY IF CONGRESS FAILS TO PROVIDE SUFFICIENT SUPPORT
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell urged Congress Wednesday to step in and provide further economic assistance due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Powell said during a teleconference on Wednesday that the U.S. economy could sustain permanent damage because of the country's response to the coronavirus.
Lawmakers have passed economic relief packages designed to help individual Americans with direct cash payouts and a program started to provide small businesses with loans in order to keep employees on the payroll. Powell's remarks on Wednesday implied those steps would not be enough to keep the U.S. economy afloat.
"While the economic response has been both timely and appropriately large," Powell said during an event held by the Peterson Institute for International Economics, "it may not be the final chapter, given that the path ahead is both highly uncertain and subject to significant downside risks. Since the answers are currently unknowable, policies will need to be ready to address a range of possible outcomes."
Business closures resulting from stay-at-home orders issued by state governments drove the U.S. unemployment rate to 14.7 percent in April, the highest level since the Great Depression. Over 27 million Americans have reported being without jobs.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that more aid from Congress would be required to prevent permanent damage to the U.S. economy caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said his party is no rush to begin crafting another stimulus package, saying Wednesday that the U.S. "can't borrow enough money to prop the economy up forever."
Democrats have already unveiled their next coronavirus stimulus package which would cost $3 trillion dollars. Included in the proposal are a second batch of direct payments in the amount of $1,200 for qualifying Americans.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi encouraged fellow lawmakers to take swift action on the proposal. "The rent doesn't take a pause," Pelosi said Tuesday. "The hardship of losing a job or tragically losing a loved one doesn't take a pause."
Newsweek reached out to the offices of Senator McConnell and Speaker Pelosi for comment. This story will be updated with any response.
Some Republicans have rejected the new proposal, wanting instead to wait until assessments can be made of how previous packages have impacted the U.S. economy. GOP lawmakers have also emphasized the importance of reopening the country's businesses, despite warnings from health officials that states relaxing coronavirus mitigation practices too quickly could lead to another wave of infections.
Director of the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony Fauci told the Senate on Tuesday that if states attempt to cut corners on coronavirus testing "without having the capability of being able to respond effectively and efficiently, my concern is that we will start to see little spikes that might turn into outbreaks."
Recent data indicated the U.S. had reported 1,423,884 positive cases of the coronavirus. As testing capacity for the virus expands throughout the U.S., the number of positive cases is expected to increase.