Fed’s Powell downplays delta variant’s threat to the economy

WASHINGTON (AP) — The spread of the COVID-19 delta variant is raising infection rates, leading some businesses and governments to require vaccinations and raising concerns about the U.S. economic recovery.

But Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell injected a note of reassurance, suggesting that the delta variant poses little threat to the economy, at least so far. Powell spoke after the Fed ended its latest policy meeting in which it it signaled that the economy is moving closer to the “substantial further progress” it wants to see before reducing the $120 billion in Treasury and mortgage bonds it is buying each month to try to spur more borrowing and spending.