Labor Department data showed unemployment claims hit the lowest point since the pandemic began, while the economy regained 916,000 jobs in March. — Reuters picWASHINGTON, April 25 — The Federal Reserve finally has what it wants and predicted: Signs of a US economic recovery that could undo some of the damage done by the Covid-19 pandemic.
In fact, Fed officials have clearly stated that they will not be spooked by temporary price increases into reacting too quickly and pumping the brakes on stimulus measures. Retail sales surged in March to a level 27.7 percent higher than the pre-pandemic rate a year earlier, while the Institute for Supply Management’s services index hit an all-time high last month and new home sales hit a 15-year high.
The steps, together with trillions of dollars in stimulus spending approved by Congress, have been credited with keeping the world’s largest economy from a worse downturn. They plan to hold off on raising the policy lending until inflation passes 2.0 per cent and stays there for some — unspecified — time, and they forecast this rate “liftoff” will not happen until after 2023.