Yellen's Fed leadership may still mean US tapering ‘this year'

Janet Yellen's appointment as chairman of the US Federal Reserve could see tapering of quantitative easing (QE) as early as December, experts say.

Yellen (pictured) will take over from current chairman Ben Bernanke next year but will face a difficult unwinding of the Fed's current $85bn a month QE programme. Current vice chairman of the Fed Yellen was known as one of the more dovish candidates for the top job. It is understood she will accept QE's continued impact but dictate an exit strategy. BlackRock's report The Road Ahead for the Fed said ending the Fed's era of ultra-loose monetary policy will be a challenge for Yellen. It said: "The Fed may reduce or taper its $85bn-a-month bond purchases as early as December, notwiths...