US Federal Reserve Vice Chair Richard Clarida on Monday announced that he is to leave the central bank early following questions over his equity trading activity early in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Clarida, whose term on the board of governors was set to expire on Jan. 31, would instead resign on Friday. He gave no explanation for the accelerated departure, but said in a resignation letter that he was “proud” to have helped steer “the economy away from depression.”
Clarida faced heightened scrutiny following reports last week that he undertook additional trades in February 2020 that appeared to contradict earlier explanations about his trading activities.
Photo: Reuters
The latest questions came after amended financial disclosure forms were reported by the New York Times.
Earlier on Monday, US Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat, had called on Fed Chair Jerome Powell to “immediately release” information relating to the trades.
“The revelations raise concerns that Clarida may have been trading on inside information related to planned policy moves, and that the Fed has failed to disclose the full scope of officials’ trading practices to the public,” Warren said.
Powell yesterday was due to appear at a confirmation hearing over his renomination as Fed chair before the US Senate Banking Committee, of which Warren is a member.
The central bank in October last year announced stricter investment rules after the resignations of two regional Fed presidents over trading activities.
A former economics professor at Columbia University, Clarida won Senate confirmation for vice chair in September 2018.
Powell on Monday praised Clarida, saying “Rich’s contributions to our monetary policy deliberations, and his leadership of the Fed’s first-ever public review of our monetary policy framework, will leave a lasting impact in the field of central banking.”
At his confirmation hearing, Powell was to highlight the central bank’s efforts to fight inflation and stabilize the US economy, testimony released on Monday showed.
“We know that high inflation exacts a toll, particularly for those less able to meet the higher costs of essentials like food, housing and transportation,” Powell was to tell senators. “We are strongly committed to achieving our statutory goals of maximum employment and price stability. We will use our tools to support the economy and a strong labor market, and to prevent higher inflation from becoming entrenched.”
Nvidia Corp chief executive officer Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) on Monday introduced the company’s latest supercomputer platform, featuring six new chips made by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), saying that it is now “in full production.” “If Vera Rubin is going to be in time for this year, it must be in production by now, and so, today I can tell you that Vera Rubin is in full production,” Huang said during his keynote speech at CES in Las Vegas. The rollout of six concurrent chips for Vera Rubin — the company’s next-generation artificial intelligence (AI) computing platform — marks a strategic
REVENUE PERFORMANCE: Cloud and network products, and electronic components saw strong increases, while smart consumer electronics and computing products fell Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) yesterday posted 26.51 percent quarterly growth in revenue for last quarter to NT$2.6 trillion (US$82.44 billion), the strongest on record for the period and above expectations, but the company forecast a slight revenue dip this quarter due to seasonal factors. On an annual basis, revenue last quarter grew 22.07 percent, the company said. Analysts on average estimated about NT$2.4 trillion increase. Hon Hai, which assembles servers for Nvidia Corp and iPhones for Apple Inc, is expanding its capacity in the US, adding artificial intelligence (AI) server production in Wisconsin and Texas, where it operates established campuses. This
Garment maker Makalot Industrial Co (聚陽) yesterday reported lower-than-expected fourth-quarter revenue of NT$7.93 billion (US$251.44 million), down 9.48 percent from NT$8.76 billion a year earlier. On a quarterly basis, revenue fell 10.83 percent from NT$8.89 billion, company data showed. The figure was also lower than market expectations of NT$8.05 billion, according to data compiled by Yuanta Securities Investment and Consulting Co (元大投顧), which had projected NT$8.22 billion. Makalot’s revenue this quarter would likely increase by a mid-teens percentage as the industry is entering its high season, Yuanta said. Overall, Makalot’s revenue last year totaled NT$34.43 billion, down 3.08 percent from its record NT$35.52
PRECEDENTED TIMES: In news that surely does not shock, AI and tech exports drove a banner for exports last year as Taiwan’s economic growth experienced a flood tide Taiwan’s exports delivered a blockbuster finish to last year with last month’s shipments rising at the second-highest pace on record as demand for artificial intelligence (AI) hardware and advanced computing remained strong, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. Exports surged 43.4 percent from a year earlier to US$62.48 billion last month, extending growth to 26 consecutive months. Imports climbed 14.9 percent to US$43.04 billion, the second-highest monthly level historically, resulting in a trade surplus of US$19.43 billion — more than double that of the year before. Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) described the performance as “surprisingly outstanding,” forecasting export growth
RSS