In separate appearances, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic, Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren and Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin noted what Barkin characterized as “air pockets” facing the U.S. economy – businesses exhausting existing order books without refilling them, and households facing the end of unemployment benefits and other support.

“Businesses like construction had pretty good pipelines and kept going,” through the first phase of the pandemic Barkin said in webcast remarks to a group of local chambers of commerce in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.

But, “new orders are not coming on line in the same way. We have fiscal payments … that are coming to an end and it is not clear what is going to replace them.” Enhanced unemployment benefits that have proved key to replacing spendable income amid record setting unemployment are due to expire this month.