‘Jay Powell is a hero’ for response to pandemic, Warren Buffett says

Warren Buffett hasn’t changed his tune on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell despite a surge in inflation. Buffett, the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. , two years ago told shareholders that Powell belonged “on the pedestal” with former Fed chief Paul Volcker, for his quick response to the danger to the economy and financial system from the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking at this year’s Berkshire annual meeting on Saturday, Buffett doubled down on his praise of the current Fed chief, saying, “in my book, Jay Powell is a hero.” Buffett said that it would have been human nature for a Fed chief to engage in “thumbsucking” when presented with a threat on the scale of the pandemic instead of taking action, which would have been disastrous for the economy. Powell has faced criticism for maintaining loose monetary policy as inflation pressures built up, with the Fed now weighing an aggressive round of rate increases and other measures aimed at tightening monetary policy.

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