US federal prosecutors open inquiry into Fed chair Powell

The ‍U.S. attorney's office in the District ⁠of Columbia has opened a criminal investigation ‌into Federal ‌Reserve chair Jerome ‌Powell over the central bank's renovation of its Washington headquarters and whether Powell lied to Congress about ‌the ‍scope of the ‍project, the New York Times ‌reported on Sunday.

The inquiry, which includes an analysis of Powell's public statements and an ‍examination of spending records, was ‍approved in ⁠November ⁠by Attorney Jeanine Pirro, the NYT reported citing officials briefed on the situation.