of that work into the current international effort to develop and implement a single global code of conduct for the foreign exchange market and to enhance adherence to that code among all market participants. work of the financial stability board ’ s foreign exchange benchmarks group ( fxbg ) given the global nature of the fx market, as well as the number of jurisdictions in which wrongdoing has been uncovered, efforts to strengthen the market must be global in nature as well. recognizing this imperative, the financial stability board ( fsb ), an international body that monitors and makes recommendations about the global financial system, established the foreign exchange benchmarks group ( fxbg ) in early 2014. the purpose of the fxbg was to review fx benchmarks and associated market practices, including potential misaligned incentives, and make recommendations for change. the fxbg, which consisted of representatives from more than twenty countries, engaged with a range of market participants to analyze the market structures and incentives as they related to trading around benchmark fixings. the group produced a series of recommendations to enhance the structures and behaviors around fx benchmark trading. i would like to focus on two particular aspects of these recommendations – first, changes to the wm / reuters calculation 10 and second, changes aimed at strengthening market conduct. the fxbg report highlighted the dominant use of the wm / reuters ( wmr ) 4 p. m. london fixings by many different sets of market participants, including some not otherwise active in the foreign exchange market. the fixings, provided across many different currency pairs, were used in many different ways – including for multicurrency portfolio valuation and for the valuation of key financial market indexes. in regard to the wmr 4 p. m. london fixings, the group identified important changes to strengthen the construction methodology and reduce the scope of potential manipulation. specifically, it recommended that the length of time over see the u. k. ’ s fair and effective markets review final report for related insightful discussion on fixed income, currency and commodities ( ficc ) markets. available at : http : / / www. bankofengland. co. uk / markets / documents / femrjun15. pdf. in the united states, the cftc has regulatory responsibility for most fx products. the wmr london fixing is now subject to regulatory oversight by the financial conduct authority ( fca ) in the u. k., in addition to the fsb initiatives

state one of the particular strengths of new york state is its diversity — and this is especially true from an economic perspective. in western and central new york there are top - tier universities, manufacturing businesses, a thriving professional services industry, as well as popular tourist destinations. since the 2008 financial crisis, the declining population trend in upstate new york of earlier decades had largely stabilized. in recent years, new businesses had sprung up and unemployment had fallen to historic lows. 1 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches all of this was against the backdrop of a strong national economy. at the start of the year, most forecasts anticipated continued moderate growth throughout 2020 and into 2021. according to the data for april, the unemployment rate now stands at a staggering 14. 7 percent — a figure i hoped that i would never see in my lifetime, and one that is sure to get worse before it gets better. if i think back to the economic picture of february, nobody could foresee this would be our reality within a few short months. it ’ s likely that the latest numbers do not reveal the full extent of the financial devastation faced by millions of american families. the data don ’ t capture those who had to leave their jobs, either for their own health or to take care of loved ones. many more people have had their hours reduced or have been forced to take a pay cut. it ’ s going to be some time before we have a detailed understanding of the full economic effects of the public health measures necessary to combat the coronavirus. what we do know is that the pandemic has put a large question mark over the positive trends experienced in our state, as well as the nation as a whole. as social distancing measures are relaxed, we will get a better understanding of how different industries are affected. we know that travel, hospitality, and retail have all been hard hit. what we don ’ t know is what the shape or timescale of the recovery will be. it ’ s going to be some time before we have a clearer view of the effects on other industries, including autos, higher education, manufacturing, and professional services. our response despite this extraordinary uncertainty, at the federal reserve we worked quickly to put measures in place to support the economy and set the foundation for a strong recovery. during the first half of march, the federal open market committee ( fomc ) brought the target range for the federal funds rate to near zero. 1 the fomc has indicated