US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urged countries to incorporate ‘recession remedies’ to protect people.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday that the global pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine highlight the possibility of major economic shocks ahead, adding that recessions are likely to continue to challenge the economy.
His speech at the Brookings Institution discussed lessons learned from past economic downturns and said countries must incorporate “recession remedies” to protect people in the United States and around the world in the future.
With “major negative shocks” inevitable, he said, policymakers have learned from the Great Recession that getting out of economic downturns “as quickly as possible” is imperative.
“Countries will do better if their economies are more resilient and less fragile,” he said. “A better understanding of disruptions in supply chains, increases in commodity prices, bursting asset bubbles, and labor and productivity shocks can help policymakers implement reforms that bolster our economic resilience. ”.
Recent years have been marked by a global pandemic that prompted the Trump and Biden administrations to issue trillions of dollars in federal stimulus aid, which economists say contributed to inflation levels at their highest points in four decades. And now the war in Ukraine has had a huge impact on world energy and food prices, along with other basic goods.
The Conference Board consumer confidence index dipped slightly in April.
Yellen called for more permanent housing security assistance for renters and homeowners and applauded recent improvements to the unemployment insurance system and stimulus payments, highlighting the importance of “US recovery policies that shorten the duration recessions and mitigate economic pain.
He promoted the efforts of the Biden administration to reduce the US dependence on fossil fuels and promote greater energy independence.
“These changes will mitigate our future vulnerability to oil price shocks,” he said. “At the same time, they will encourage the transition to cleaner energy sources that, in due course, will reduce the risks related to natural disasters and climate change.”