Jerome Powell has mild symptoms and is working remotely while isolating at home.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday and is showing mild symptoms of the virus, the US central bank said in a statement.
Powell, who turns 70 next month, has updated his COVID-19 vaccine and booster and is working remotely while isolating at home. Fed said.
The US central bank’s next policy meeting will be January 31-February 1. Investors are all expecting the Fed to raise interest rates by a quarter percentage point at that meeting. .
There was little reaction in financial markets following the Fed’s announcement that Powell had COVID-19. The Fed chief often prepares for policy meetings with a busy mix of face-to-face and online meetings.
The Fed’s rate-setting board has a giant screen in its Washington boardroom, and it has supported members’ participation via videoconference as needed since the resumption of key setting sessions. direct book in March 2022.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises people who test positive for COVID-19 to isolate at home for five days, then – as long as symptoms are never more severe than mild and are improving, while not having a fever – continue but continue to use a high-quality mask around others for another 10 days.
That timeline will allow Powell to come out of isolation before the start of the next Fed policy meeting.
Last April, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde revealed that she had tested positive for COVID-19, a week before the expected ECB policy meeting. She experiences mild symptoms and also works from home. Her press conference at that meeting took place, with Lagarde joining by video link from home because she was still positive for the virus.
