Fed chair Jerome Powell has warned of 'an extended period of low productivity growth and stagnant incomes,' Reuters reported.

“It will take some time to get back to where we were,” Powell said in a webcast. “There is a sense, growing sense I think, that the recovery may come more slowly than we would like. But it will come, and that may mean that it’s necessary for us to do more.”

According to him, the worst-case outcome leaves the economy mired in “an extended period of low productivity growth and stagnant incomes ... Additional fiscal support could be costly but worth it if it helps avoid long-term economic damage and leaves us with a stronger recovery,” Powell said in what amounted to a direct call for Congress to ramp up its aid during the crisis. 

“This trade-off is one for our elected representatives, who wield powers of taxation and spending.”