MAKING IT RAIN

Federal Reserve Rolls Out $2.3 Trillion Package to Try to Keep Small Businesses Alive

The central bank said it will work with banks to hand out four-year loans to companies of up to 10,000 employees.

The U.S. Federal Reserve has rolled out a staggering $2.3 trillion package in its latest effort to save small and mid-size businesses from folding while the country battles the novel coronavirus pandemic. The central bank said it will work with banks to hand out four-year loans to companies of up to 10,000 employees, and will buy up bonds of states and cities to help them battle back from the unprecedented health crisis. “Our country’s highest priority must be to address this public-health crisis, providing care for the ill and limiting the further spread of the virus,” Powell said in a statement reported by Reuters. “The Fed’s role is to provide as much relief and stability as we can during this period of constrained economic activity, and our actions today will help ensure that the eventual recovery is as vigorous as possible.” Following the announcement, Wall Street jumped at the open with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising some 257 points.