Fed’s Support, U.S. Food Banks, Brazil’s Largess: Eco Day

(Bloomberg) -- Welcome to Wednesday, Americas. Here’s the latest news and analysis from Bloomberg Economics to help you start the week:

• The president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Tom Barkin said now is not the time to worry that keeping rates lower for longer could invite risky behaviors in financial markets
• American food banks are being overwhelmed by worst crisis ever: Hunger is surging in the heart of the breadbasket, showing just how dire the problem has become during the pandemic
• Pennsylvania is a prized battleground in this year’s election, and if Donald Trump carries the state again it will be because he either held on to, or built up, support in places such as Beaver County. Bloomberg’s Shawn Donnan takes at look at the Pennsylvania town’s economy
• Following signs of a downturn in previous weeks, the latest readings of high-frequency data show activity stabilizing across most advanced economies, though still some way from pre-Covid levels. With activity at just two-thirds of pre-virus levels, the U.S. is the worst performing of the advanced economies Bloomberg Economics is tracking
• Brazil, which has suffered one of the world’s worst pandemic tolls, has responded to the crisis by distributing so much cash directly to citizens that poverty and inequality are approaching national historic lows
• European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde has a new challenge to worry about on top of a fading economic recovery and a slump in inflation -- a surging currency

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