Yellen confirmed by U.S. senate to become Fed chairman
Bareksa • 07 Jan 2014
Nominee for the Federal Reserve Board Chairman Janet Yellen (Bloomberg/Alex Wong)
The Fed says its bond-buying helped reduce unemployment to a five-year low
Bloomberg - Janet Yellen won U.S. Senate confirmation to become the 15th chairman of the Federal Reserve and the first woman to head the central bank in its 100-year history. Yellen, 67, was confirmed today by a 56-26 vote, with 11 Republicans supporting her.
She’ll replace Ben S. Bernanke, whose second term as chairman expires Jan. 31, as the Fed trims monthly bond purchases in a first step toward lessening the unprecedented stimulus. Currently Fed vice chairman, Yellen has backed Bernanke’s efforts to steer the economy through its most severe crisis since the 1930s with record-low interest rates and three rounds of bond buying that have swelled Fed assets to $4.02 trillion.