Fed Vice Chairman Fischer to resign for 'personal reasons'

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer will resign next month for personal reasons, leaving a fourth vacancy on the seven-member Fed governing board.

Fischer is a widely-respected economist who taught at MIT and was head of the Bank of Israel for eight years. His unexpected departure adds to a leadership vacuum at the top of the Fed as it navigates a difficult path. Fischer, 73, is a close confidant of Fed Chair Janet Yellen, whose own term ends in February

The U.S. central bank is slowly raising interest rates as the economy grows and unemployment falls. Yet inflation remains below the Fed's target, complicating its future course.

Fischer has been a member of the Fed's Board of Governors since May 2014.