US consumer sentiment rebounds slightly after hitting lowest level on record

The Department of Justice is expected to drop its criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell as soon as Friday, ending a standoff that threatened to delay the confirmation of Powell's successor at the central bank, multiple sources familiar with the matter told ABC News. Senior DOJ officials have contacted senators in recent days, including Republican Sen. Thom Tillis. who sits on the Senate Banking Committee, informing them of the plan to drop the probe and refer the matter regarding alleged cost overruns at the Fed's Washington headquarters to the bank's internal watchdog, the sources said. The Fed's independent inspector general conducted an audit of the building renovation costs in 2021 and Powell had already asked the watchdog to take a fresh look at the $2.5 billion project last year. This morning the Inspector General for the Federal Reserve has been asked to scrutinize the building costs overruns – in the billions of dollars – that have been borne by taxpayers. The IG has the authority to hold the Federal Reserve accountable to American taxpayers. I…