Black-owned businesses turned to fintech firms at more than twice the rate of those owned by white, Hispanic or Asian people when applying for pandemic aid under the Paycheck Protection Program, according to research by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
By Reuters Staff
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FILE PHOTO: U.S. Treasury Secretary-designate Janet Yellen in Wilmington, Delaware, U.S., December 1, 2020. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Thursday she believes recent rise in inflation will prove temporary and that there is still slack in the economy, but that the White House, Congress, and Treasury are watching it close and have the tools to address it if needed.
“The recent inflation we have seen will be temporary, it’s not something that’s endemic,” Yellen told the House Appropriations Committee, noting that what’s driving it is a rebound from very low measures last year and shortages of materials. “I expect it to last several more months and to see high annual rates of inflation through the end of this year.”
Inflation concerns have kept equity markets volatile in recent weeks as high readings could revive talk of an early tapering by the U.S. Federal Reserve, which will release new inflation data on Friday.