After a lengthy and politically charged search, US President Barack Obama has decided to nominate US Federal Reserve Vice Chairwoman Janet Yellen to succeed Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke at a pivotal time for the US economy.
If confirmed by the US Senate, Yellen would be the first woman to head a major central bank anywhere in the world.
Yellen would also be the first Democrat to lead the US central bank since former Fed chairman Paul Volcker was picked by then-US president Jimmy Carter in 1979.
Photo: EPA
Obama was scheduled to make the announcement yesterday with Yellen and Bernanke at his side in the White House’s East Room.
Bernanke, 59, will serve until his term ends on Jan. 31, completing a remarkable eight-year tenure in which he helped pull the US economy out of the worst financial crisis and recession since the 1930s.
Yellen, 67, emerged as the top candidate after Lawrence Summers, a former US Treasury secretary and White House favorite for the job, withdrew from consideration last month due to rising opposition.
A close ally of Bernanke’s, Yellen has been a key architect of the Fed’s efforts to keep interest rates near record-lows to support the economy and would likely continue steering Fed policy in the same direction as her predecessor.
Her nomination could face resistance from congressional critics who argue that the Fed’s low-rate policies have raised the risk of high inflation and might be breeding dangerous asset bubbles.
Democratic Senator Tim Johnson, who heads the Senate Banking Committee that must approve Yellen’s nomination, said he would work with the panel’s members to advance her confirmation quickly.
“She has a depth of experience that is second to none and I have no doubt she will be an excellent Federal Reserve chairman,” Johnson said in a statement.
Yellen drew outspoken support from Senate Democrats, one-third of whom signed a letter this summer urging Obama to choose her.
This month, more than 350 economists also signed a similar letter of support to Obama.
While some economists see Obama’s choice of Yellen as a strong signal of continuity at the Fed, others said the difficult job of unwinding all of the Fed’s support without causing major financial market upheavals would fall on her.
At the Fed, Yellen has built a reputation as a “dove” — someone typically more concerned with keeping interest rates low than raising them to avert high inflation.
Still, Yellen has said that when rates need to be raised to prevent high inflation as the economy picks up, she will move in that direction.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
BULLY TACTICS: Beijing has continued its incursions into Taiwan’s airspace even as Xi Jinping talked about Taiwan being part of the Chinese family and nation China should stop its coercion of Taiwan and respect mainstream public opinion in Taiwan about sovereignty if its expression of goodwill is genuine, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday. Ministry spokesman Jeff Liu (劉永健) made the comment in response to media queries about a meeting between former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) the previous day. Ma voiced support for the so-called “1992 consensus,” while Xi said that although the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have “different systems,” this does not change the fact that they are “part of the same country,” and that “external
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source