A US fuel tax cut is among the options being considered to provide relief to consumers, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Friday, adding she was confident that the country's economy would perform well this year.
"We're looking at a range of things that we might do to relieve consumers. The gas tax is one of the things on the list," Ms Yellen told reporters on Friday at a social services agency in Denver, Colorado.
However, she added that she had concerns that cutting the fuel tax could cause benefits to flow to oil companies and not to consumers.
She also said that a tighter monetary policy to fight inflation could cause recession, but added that the Federal Reserve should be able to balance its dual mandate for maximum employment and price stability.
"I have confidence in the Fed to get inflation under control without causing a recession. And I see a good strong economy that, even with inflation and the problems that the Russia Ukraine situation is causing, I believe the economy will do well this year."
Commenting on the US dollar's reserve currency status, which has enabled powerful sanctions against Russia, she said there was no serious competitor to the dollar.
"There really is no other currency that I think can rival it as the reserve currency, and creates the ability to impose very strong sanctions", Ms Yellen said, when asked if the dollar could lose some of its global clout due to efforts by Russia and China to find alternative ways to do business.
"China has engaged in searches, Russia has as well, but it's really not come close to inventing any kind of substitute for the dollar," Ms Yellen said.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
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1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes 281
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Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
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Bitcoin is the most popular virtual currency in the world. It was created in 2009 as a new way of paying for things that would not be subject to central banks that are capable of devaluing currency. A Bitcoin itself is essentially a line of computer code. It's signed digitally when it goes from one owner to another. There are sustainability concerns around the cryptocurrency, which stem from the process of "mining" that is central to its existence.
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Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
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Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)
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Sunday
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The struggle is on for active managers
David Einhorn closed out 2018 with his biggest annual loss ever for the 22-year-old Greenlight Capital.
The firm’s main hedge fund fell 9 per cent in December, extending this year’s decline to 34 percent, according to an investor update viewed by Bloomberg.
Greenlight posted some of the industry’s best returns in its early years, but has stumbled since losing more than 20 per cent in 2015.
Other value-investing managers have also struggled, as a decade of historically low interest rates and the rise of passive investing and quant trading pushed growth stocks past their inexpensive brethren. Three Bays Capital and SPO Partners & Co., which sought to make wagers on undervalued stocks, closed in 2018. Mr Einhorn has repeatedly expressed his frustration with the poor performance this year, while remaining steadfast in his commitment to value investing.
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At the start of the year, Greenlight managed $6.3 billion in assets, according to a regulatory filing. By May, the firm was down to $5.5bn.
