Federal Reserve Chairman to support economy amidst corona outbreak

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell pledged that the Fed will “use our tools” to support the economy, a strong signal of a likely rate cut, perhaps at its next meeting March 17-18. The Fed said Friday that it will “act as appropriate to support the economy.” The statement came after a week of sharp market drops that drove stocks down roughly 13% in value. Powell said the fundamentals of the U.S. economy “remain strong,” but added that “the coronavirus poses evolving risks to economic activity.”