Fed’s Fisher Says Government Spending to Help Boost US Economy

The Federal Reserve’s second-in-command was the latest to wade into a post-election debate over what policies the new U.S. government should pursue, saying on Monday spending and other efforts to boost sluggish productivity could help reduce the Fed’s burden of supporting the economy.

“Certain fiscal policies, particularly those that increase productivity, can increase the potential of the economy and help confront some of our longer-term economic challenges,” said Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer.

“Some combination of improved public infrastructure, better education, more encouragement for private investment, and more effective regulation all likely have a role to play in promoting faster growth of productivity and living standards,” he said at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Fischer’s remarks come nearly two weeks after Americans shocked pollsters by electing as president Republican Donald Trump, who campaigned on a platform of infrastructure spending, tax cuts, and renegotiated or canceled international trade pacts.

The economy, eight years after the worst of the recession, is now in “the vicinity” of the U.S. central bank’s employment and inflation goals, Fischer said, adding it was performing “reasonably well.”

via CNBC

Content is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc. or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. If you would like to reproduce or redistribute any of the content found on MarketPulse, an award winning forex, commodities and global indices analysis and news site service produced by OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc., please access the RSS feed or contact us at info@marketpulse.com. Visit https://www.marketpulse.com/ to find out more about the beat of the global markets. © 2023 OANDA Business Information & Services Inc.