By Paul Kiernan
WASHINGTON -- Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reaffirmed the central bank's commitment to maintaining easy-money policies until the economy has recovered further from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
"The economy is a long way from our employment and inflation goals," Mr. Powell said in testimony to the Senate Banking Committee, a statement he has repeated in recent weeks.
The Fed will therefore continue to support the economy with near-zero interest rates and large-scale asset purchases until "substantial further progress has been made," a standard that Mr. Powell said "is likely to take some time" to achieve.