Bernanke

WASHINGTON - THE US economy is growing a bit faster than expected and could avert recession, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke indicated on Tuesday, while citing a 'critical' need to keep inflation expectations in check.Mr Bernanke also said a 'top priority' of the central bank would be to keep financial markets functioning, and that the Fed was paying close attention to the troubles of mortga

At a Full Committee Hearing (Systemic Risk and the Financial Markets) of the House Committee on Financial Services, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke urged Congress to consolidate more power with a single regulator for the oversight of investment banks. This is the first hearing on this subject, and Congress has plans to continue the series of

For the past few years American policy makers have been talking of a strong dollar while doing nothing to prevent the fall of the greenback to stimulate exports and reduce the national debt. You would think the markets would therefore be less and less impressed by the bull from New York and Washington. And yet over [...]

WASHINGTON - DESPITE a recent spike in the unemployment rate, the danger that the US economy has fallen into a 'substantial downturn' appears to have waned, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Monday. Addressing a Fed conference in Chatham, Massachusetts, on Monday night, Mr Bernanke said a government report last week showing the unemployment rate rising from 5 per cent in April to 5.5 p

* Government bonds drop on Bernanke inflation warning * U.S. dollar hits three-month high against yen * Asia stocks slip with eyes on inflation, financials By Kevin Plumberg HONG KONG, June 10... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Mortgage rates are a big deal when you're buying a home.  With even the slighest uptick in rates, 30 years of mortgage payments can get substantially more expensive and one of the most substantial threats to mortgage rates is an economic event called inflation.  Inflation's influence on mortgage rates is so large that markets can get jarred on just the mention of it and that'

Mortgage rates are a big deal when you're buying a home. Witheventhe slighest uptick in rates, 30 years of mortgage payments can get substantially more expensive and one of the most substantial threats to mortgage rates is an economic event called inflation. Inflation's influence on mortgage rates is so large that markets can get jarred on just the mention of it and that's exactly what happened

By Jeannine Aversa, AP Economics Writer Bernanke doesn't see repeat of `70s style spiraling prices, wages WASHINGTON (AP) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Wednesday he does not believe the United States will experience the out-of-control prices seen with 1970s oil shocks.His assessment came in a speech delivered Wednesday to graduating students at Harvard University, where he earned

“To my knowledge, Bernanke has never before stressed the dollar’s decline, the inflationary dangers it poses and his intention to guard against these as much as he did yesterday. The immediate reaction was for the dollar to rally.” — Dominic Frisby Blogger’s note: Dominic Frisby, an editor at our British [...]

Ben Bernanke’s unusual comments on Tuesday when linking a weakening dollar with inflation threw financial markets into a spin and sparked a mini exodus of dollar short position from the currency markets. The euro fell by 2 cents against the greenback in the matter of a couple of hours. Currency markets have since stabilised and it remains to be seen whether Bernanke’s verbal intervention will

Fed chairman Ben Bernanke talked up the dollar a couple of pips yesterday. But beware a false sense of security. The bullish crowd from Wall Street would have us believe the dollar’s fall is over and that stabilization at two per cent interest rates will spark a rally after eight months of falling rates. It [...]

Bernanke indicated that he is done cutting interest rates for the time being and is now watching the dollar for inflationary concerns. The dollar has declined nearly 16 percent against the euro over the past year. The Fed is now putting its foot down and officially stating that they are no longer going to let the dollar fall further in value against the euro.

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In a prepared talk Tuesday morning, Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke signaled further interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve are unlikely because of growing concerns about inflation and the weak dollar. Specifically, he said that the Federal Reserves powerful doses of rate reductions that started last September along with the  $168 billion stimulus package, including [...]

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke commented on the economy today. Outlook: "Broadly speaking, the functioning of financial markets has improved of late, but conditions remain strained and some key funding and securitization markets have shown only tentative signs of recovery. Some borrowers, such as highly-rated corporations, retain good access to credit, but credit conditions generally remain restrict

“There has not been a chairman of the Federal Reserve Board with sound monetary instincts since Paul Volcker resigned in 1987.” — Lord William Rees-Mogg by Lord William Rees-Mogg Baltimore — (TFN): The American electoral system has never been designed to protect sound finance, and it has become more dangerous as the federal government and the Federal [...]

      Financial market turmoil underscores the need for “generous” capital cushions, and banks need to actively raise money as needed, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Thursday.    ”I strongly urge financial institutions to remain proactive in their capital-raising efforts,” Bernanke said in prepared remarks at a conference on bank structure and c

MIDLAND (Texas) - United States Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the credit crisis was not over, even as his colleagues revealed growing concerns about inflation that could signal a pause in interest rate cuts. 'Conditions in financial markets are still far from normal,' Mr Bernanke said on Tuesday. 'Ultimately, market participants themselves must address the fundamental sources of finan

This is what Bernanke said at the Columbia Business School’s 32nd Annual Dinner in New York: Chairman Ben S. Bernanke At the Columbia Business School’s 32nd Annual Dinner, New York, New York May 5, 2008 Mortgage Delinquencies and Foreclosures President Bollinger, Dean Hubbard, Co-Chairman Kravis, and distinguished guests, I am very pleased to be here and especially honored to receive [...]

"Bernanke, in a speech in New York yesterday, also reiterated his call for lenders to forgive portions of mortgages for some struggling homeowners. He said proposals should be "tightly targeted" at borrowers at greatest risk of losing their properties, and avoid providing an incentive for defaults."

 Ben S. Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, urged Congress on Monday to allow federal agencies more leeway in overseeing the ailing mortgage industry, emphasizing that the causes of the current foreclosure crisis were more difficult to address than those in the past.

Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke outlined some of his reasons for government intervention in the housing bust in a speech at Columbia Business School, arguing that steep price declines and foreclosures carry a high risk of imperiling the overall economy. From a CNNMoney.com story:Foreclosure filings of all kinds - delinquency notices, auctions sale notices and bank repossessions - were up 112% during the first three months of 2008 compared with the same period a year ago. Community advocates and policy makers are worried that the problem will worsen as the interest rates on as many as 1.8 million mortgages reset this year."High rates of delinquency and foreclosure can have substantial spillover effects on the housing market, the financial markets, and the broader economy," concluded Ber

“At this point, Ben Bernanke has to feel like Barney Fife. Remember how on the Andy Griffith Show, Andy only gave Barney one bullet and he had to keep it in his pocket? Mr. Bernanke has to feel like he is running out of bullets and needs [...]

-- UPDATED --Fed chairman Ben Bernanke may be a bit unfocused at the runnning 2-day FOMC meeting. The Wall Street Journal, for the first 95 years a staunch supporter of every Fed move, walks him to the gang plank. After being equalled to an alcoholic desiring ever more liquidity and given the advice to join Central Bankers Anonymous by an anonymous writer on Monday the Wall Street Journal has stepped up its attack on Tuesday. Fed expert Greg Ip thrusts another knife into Bernanke's direction, writing,The Federal Reserve's rescue of Bear Stearns Cos. will come to be seen as its "worst policy mistake in a generation," a former top Fed staffer said.The episode will be seen as comparable to "the great contraction" of the 1930s and "the great inflation" of the 1970s, Vincent Reinhart said Mond

Business Week Chief Economist Michael Mandel argues that Fed Chief Bernanke should continue cutting rates until the financial markets have stabilized:We live in a boom and bust world—and it’s not the Fed’s fault. As we wait to see what the Fed does on Wednesday, one thing is clear to me: Bernanke and his crew need to keep cutting rates until the economy and the financial markets stabilize, and not worry about the naysayers. Since the middle of the 1990s, I’ve followed a very consistent theme in my writings. I’ve argued that we live in a high-volatility, high-growth world. High-risk, high-return: The two things go together. In the second half of the 1990s, we had the Information Revolution, the Internet, and the tech boom. Then we had the tech bust. All told, the combination o

Yes, as you’ve noticed, I’ve been away a bit. You guys didn’t get too lonely did ya? I’m OK, I‘ve just been busy, busy, busy...but I’m back now and here’s the scoop: The economy is in bad shape. I hope that bit of top secret info didn’t cause you guys too much shock, they(the Feds, etc.) have pulled the wool over our sweet little sheep eyes again. I remember hearing the Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke, say in the latter part of last year that we were not in for a recession, but I knew from the looks of things - jobs, gas, housing - that oh yes, we were in a recession in 2007 and certainly now in 2008 - the Feds always have a way of hiding the truth. It’s called lying, oh my, such a dirty word. You mean the federal government, our fine and distingished statesmen lie

Overseers of the U.S. and international financial system need to quickly put reforms in place to restore confidence in markets disrupted by a global credit crisis, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Thursday.The current market unrest complicates the process of making changes aimed at erecting a firewall against future crises, Bernanke told the World [...]

April 11, ReutersRICHMOND, Virginia - Overseers of the U.S. and international financial system need to quickly put reforms in place to restore confidence in markets disrupted by a global credit crisis, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Thursday.The current market unrest complicates the process of making changes aimed at erecting a firewall against future crises, Bernanke told the World Affairs Council, but swift action could soothe jittery financial markets."We do not have the luxury of waiting for markets to stabilize before we think about the future," he said. "Indeed, many of the necessary changes that have been identified -- including increasing transparency, improving risk management, and attaining better coordination among regulators -- could provide important support to

Bernanke is pushing for more government involvement in order to strengthen financial markets. He said that regulators should insure that financial institutions hold higher liquidity cushions in order to lower their exposure to market events.

09:44 04/09 (CEP News) – In a speech where he made no comment about the economy or monetary policy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said more U.S. states should teach financial literacy.Bernanke said the problems in the mortgage market highlight the importance of financial literacy."In light of the problems that have arisen in the subprime mortgage market, we are reminded of how critically important it is for individuals to become financially literate at an early age," Bernanke said in a prepared text।Full Article @

According the the Wall Street Journal Economics Blog Fed chairman Ben Bernanke, in a speech today, stated the importance of financial literacy classes in high school. A survey given to high school seniors had only 48.3% of the students correctly answering questions about personal finance and economics. This is down from 52.4% in a similar survey given in 2006. The recent survey scored the lowest of six surveys conducted. Bernanke stated that only eight states require a personal finance class for graduation and that more states should consider it a requirement.Imagine more people required to take a personal finance class? There might not be a need for all of the personal finance blogs out there! I could be sitting here blogging about the weather instead.In all seriousness I think Bern

According the the Wall Street Journal Economics Blog Fed chairman Ben Bernanke, in a speech today, stated the importance of financial literacy classes in high school. A survey given to high school seniors had only 48.3% of the students correctly answering questions about personal finance and economics. This is down from 52.4% in [...]

Economic NewsUSD Yesterday, the Greenback spent most of the trading day with bullish momentum against a majority of its currency pairs and crosses. This despite a day of disappointment from US economic news. As the financial world awaited the results of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) Meeting Minutes, the assumption amongst investors was that the summary of the news would be so bad for the US economic outlook, that the dollar would suffer big losses. Though the meeting minutes were released and gave no real positive outlook for future economic progress, a sense of urgency still exists amongst investors regarding a slowdown in growth. Still though it is unknown what the real catalyst behind the bullishness has been.One of the key points of the FOMC Meetings was the discussion of th

The fed chairman Ben Bernanke may have thwarted a national depression which is currently being experienced only as a recession. Financial markets are near collapse, housing value is dropping, housing defaults are up, jobs are down and people are scared. It is possible that Ben’s policy may have bought the country more time. The concept of putting government money into the system is not something new. It is the understanding that Bernanke came to with the economy and the different methods he used to fuse money into the system hitting those sectors that were worse off. This has led to a slowing of economic decline. Putting Money into the System: The government has infused money into the financial system by allowing protections for homeowners and support for large systems. This infusion of

By Daniel Kruger and Sandra HernandezApril 7, BloombergFor the first time since December, the bond market is closing the credibility gap with Ben S. Bernanke and signaling its agreement with the Federal Reserve chairman that an economic collapse has been averted and that interest rates are bottoming.Treasury yields rose 0.33 percentage point on average through April 4 from this year's low of 2.49 percent on March 17, according to Merrill Lynch & Co. indexes. The increase is the first since December, when the Fed cut its target rate for overnight loans between banks and said lower borrowing costs ``should help promote moderate growth.''The Fed's unprecedented support for JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s takeover of New York-based Bear Stearns Cos. on March 16 is restoring confidence in Bernan

I never wanted Ron Paul to be President, but there were many times I admired him for taking on certain issues that others have been afraid to tackle.The collusion of big business and government has been an issue that has been tearing this country down the last couple of decades.

CURRENCY TRADING SUMMARYU.S. Dollar Trading (USD) paired much of it recent gains as Fed Chairman Bernanke noted further declines in the world’s largest economy would continue to contract in the first half of 2008, conceding for the first time the likelihood of recession. In other news, ADP employment reports for the month of March grew by 8k jobs well above forecasts of -48k (Previous: -23k), prompting traders to foresee a better Non Farm Payrolls release come Friday. However any further gains were limited following Bernanke’s dovish comments where “it appears likely that real gross domestic product will not grow much, if at all, over the first half of 2008 and could even contract slightly." In U.S. share markets the NASDAQ was up by 15.97 points (+0.18%) whilst the Dow Jones fell by

Bernanke Says Fed Acted to Prevent Collapse of Bear Stearns to Protect Financial System By Martin Crutsinger, AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve’s unprecedented actions to prevent the collapse of Bear Stearns were taken to preserve the “integrity and viability of the American financial system” and did not represent any kind of bailout, Fed [...]

By Sue Kirchhoff, USA TODAYWASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Wednesday that the economy could fall into recession, as housing and financial markets remain distressed despite dramatic Fed interest rate cuts and emergency lending. "It now appears likely that (the economy) will not grow much, if at all, over the first half of 2008 and could even contract slightly," Bernanke told the Joint Economic Committee. He expects activity to pick up into 2009 but warned that major risks remain. "We are fighting against the wind," Bernanke said. Bernanke staunchly defended the Fed's decision last month to broker JPMorgan Chase's (JPM) takeover of investment bank Bear Stearns, (BSC) including approval of a loan backed by $30 billion of Bear Stearns assets. MORTGAGE DEMAND DROPS: In

By Sue Kirchhoff, USA TODAYWASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Wednesday that the economy could fall into recession, as housing and financial markets remain distressed despite dramatic Fed interest rate cuts and emergency lending. "It now appears likely that (the economy) will not grow much, if at all, over the first half of 2008 and could even contract slightly," Bernanke told the Joint Economic Committee. He expects activity to pick up into 2009 but warned that major risks remain. "We are fighting against the wind," Bernanke said. Bernanke staunchly defended the Fed's decision last month to broker JPMorgan Chase's (JPM) takeover of investment bank Bear Stearns, (BSC) including approval of a loan backed by $30 billion of Bear Stearns assets. MORTGAGE DEMAND DROPS: In

U.S. stocks dropped for the first time in three days, after Ben Bernanke issued a warning that the nation may be headed towards a recession. This is the first time that he has officially acknowledged that an U.S. recession is possible due to credit crisis, declines in employment, and significantly lower consumer spending.

IF I were still blogging, I would post a brief missive about Ben Bernanke and how he got as close as any Fed chairman would ever get to calling a recession. While he didn't use the "R" word to characterise the present state of the economy, he did note today in his prepared remarks before the Joint Economic Committee that we could see the economy contract during the 1st half of this year. Yes, the Fed chairman who told us Spring of '07 that housing prices would continue rise for the foreseeable future; yes, the Ben Shalom Bernanke who told us last summer that subprime would be contained; yes, our Gentle Ben who told us earlier this year that the economy would slow but would continue to grow in '08 - conceded, with the President far away in Eastern Europe and the Treasury Secretary in Chin

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has finally dipped his toes into the waters of reality, admitting that real gross domestic product "could even contract slightly." He also discussed revealed his thoughts on managing inflation versus propping up the sicker parts of the economy, including rescuing Bear Stearns from an almost-certain wipe-out. From an L.A. Times story:Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke warned this morning that threats to the economy are far from over, with unemployment on the rise, prices for food and fuel growing, and real incomes on the wane...The Fed chairman said he considered inflation to be a secondary threat to the economy, citing a leveling off of commodities prices in the futures markets, especially for oil. And he said that he expects the economy to be on the rebou

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke acknowledged for the first time that a U.S. recession is possible because homebuilding, unemployment and consumer spending will deteriorate.“It now appears likely that real gross domestic product will not grow much, if at all, over the first half of 2008 and could even contract slightly,” Bernanke said in testimony [...]

Today Ben Bernake, the Federal Reserve Chairman, warned Congress that the economy may shrink over the first half of this year, which would signal the start of a recession. Yet, he didn’t offer assurances of further interest rate cuts. In prepared testimony to Congress’ Joint Economic Committee, Bernanke didn’t use the word recession. But it’s the [...]

The Chairman seems to become more pessimistic about the US economy than before. He is now speaking in the testimony in Congress. He also defended the bail-out for Bear Stearns.From Bloomberg:Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke acknowledged for the first time that the economy may contract as homebuilding weakens further, unemployment rises and consumer spending slumps."It now appears likely that real gross domestic product will not grow much, if at all, over the first half of 2008 and could even contract slightly,'' Bernanke said in testimony to Congress's Joint Economic Committee today. He also told lawmakers the Fed's agreement to provide an emergency loan to Bear Stearns Cos. followed a March 13 warning by the company that it "would have to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy the next

In testimony to Congress' Joint Economic Committee today, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that "It now appears likely that real gross domestic product will not grow much, if at all, over the first half of 2008 and could even contract slightly." Scott Lanman, Bloomberg News, on Bernanke's testimony. While the Fed expects the economy to return to its long- term growth pace in 2009, "in

I tried watching this on TV but watching the blowhards in Congress incessantly drone on in sound bites like "rainman" just is too much for a human to be expected to bear. I can't be expected to "take one for the team" every time these guys decide to put on the dog and pony show. That being said, I decided to read in quiet... Here is the outlook: "Overall, the near-term economic outlook has weakened relative to the projections released by the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) at the end... Continued at Todd Sullivan's ValuePlays

En declaraciones a la Comisión Económica Conjunta de las cámaras del Congreso, Bernanke no pronunció la palabra recesión. Pero es la primera vez que sugiere esa posibilidad, dado el trío de crisis, de vivienda, crediticia y financiera, que golpea al país. Compártelo Para Ver la Fuente Original Click Enrique García [...]

March 27 (Bloomberg) — Marjorie Killian is eager to buy a home in San Diego and is pre-approved for a mortgage. She won’t make an offer on a property until she can get a fixed rate of 5.5 percent, she said. Killian is just the kind of buyer that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke needs to [...]

JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM) revised its $2 offer for Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC) up to $10. Bear now trades at $11.40. Someone may think that JPM or another entity may... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

This from Bloomberg.com: Bernanke lives in Washington’s Capitol Hill area in a four- bedroom, 2,600-square-foot house he bought new in May 2004 for $839,000. Almost four years later, it may not be worth any more, according to real estate records and local agents. Bernanke’s timing wasn’t the best — values in the area peaked a year later [...]

Jim Rogers said Ben Bernanke is "an idiot". And he continues to be very critical of the Fed's policy making yesterday on Bloomberg, saying the Bernanke and his colleagues know nothing about... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for having a strong economy and the United States maintaining a global economic advantage. However, one thing that I am opposed to more than anything is the government stepping in and using tax-payer funds to help support companies that seem to be going under. Furthermore, I don’t think that [...]

This morning, Bloomberg interviewed commodities investor Jim Rogers from Singapore (Bloomberg video link here). The chairman of Rogers Holdings spoke with Bloomberg’s Rishaad Salamat over the telephone about the U.S. Federal Reserve’s actions to calm financial markets, JPMorgan Chase’s buyout of Bear Stearns for $240 million, and his investment strategy. While I talked [...]

March 5 (Bloomberg) -- Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson may need to revise his strategy for stemming record U.S. home foreclosures after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke urged lenders to forgive portions of some loans.(This is one of our major negotiation requests -asking for principle reduction- to get you a payment you can afford!)Bernanke's call, in a speech yesterday to bankers in Orlando, Florida, went beyond a Paulson-backed plan that focuses on renegotiating interest rates. With his remarks, the Fed chief joined the heads of the Office of Thrift Supervision and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and congressional Democrats in proposing stronger actions than Paulson to alleviate the worst housing recession in a quarter century. You can read the whole article here

Dark clouds hung over the US dollar as the currency consolidated losses against most of the major currencies. Indeed, the euro held near the 1.52 level for much of the day after hitting an all-time... More at: http//moneymakinglounge.blogspot.com

In his strongest words to date by far on the housing and mortgage crisis, Fed Chief Bernanke gave banks two stark choices today: be willing to forgive portions of mortgage balances for borrowers underwater or face increasing "jingle mail" as homeowners walk away from properties and mail in their keys rather than continue paying mortgage payments. From the L.A. Times:Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said today that the nation's banks must be ready to go beyond stretching out interest payments or trimming rates and write down the principal of some troubled mortgages in order to avoid widespread foreclosures and break the steep dive in housing prices. Speaking to a banking conference in Florida, where house prices have tumbled further than in almost any other state but California,

Here's an excerpt from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech on 'Reducing Preventable Mortgage Foreclosures' at the Independent Community Bankers of America Annual Convention, Orlando, Florida. In cases where refinancing is not possible, the next-best solution may often be some type of loss-mitigation arrangement between the lender and the distressed borrower. Indeed, the Federal

Bernanke urged lenders to forgive homeowners who are at the risk of defaulting on portions of their mortgages. Poised with the worst housing market in a quarter of a century, the Federal Reserve noted that housing conditions have too great of risk on the economy then monetary policy will be able to deter. In a report to Congress, Bernanke is asking lenders to work out mortgage terms and defer payments for those homes falling below their mortgage balances.

WASHINGTON - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Thursday the United States was not headed toward 1970s-style 'stagflation' but acknowledged inflation could complicate the central bank's... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

WASHINGTON - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday signaled a readiness to cut interest rates again to prevent further damage to the weak US economy, even as he took note of rising... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke noted that the U.S. central bank is prepared to continue to lower interest rates as economic conditions worsen despite high inflation. The announcement comes after several bad reports from the government indicating weaker economic conditions. Durable good orders for January dropped 5.3 percent as companies began to significantly cut back on spending. Also new homes sales continue to slide with new home sales at the lowest level since February 1995. The Fed has stated that is more concerned with financial stability and growth over the rising costs of inflation.

If you think the markets are screwed up, wrapped in fears of recession and wondering whether they should buy or sell, you are not alone. Why? How can they expect to know what to do when Big Ben can't even...

Helicopter Ben seems more than a bit dour on the prospects for the economy:"The outlook for the economy has worsened in recent months, and the downside risks to growth have increased," Bernanke said. "To date, the largest economic effects of the financial turmoil appear to have been on the housing market, which, as you know, has deteriorated significantly over the past two years or so." Bernanke also said that the "virtual shutdown" of the market for subprime mortgages — given to people with blemished credit histories or low incomes — and a reluctance by skittish lenders to make "jumbo" home loans exceeding $417,000 have aggravated problems in the housing market.Unsold homes have piled up and foreclosures have climbed to record highs. "Further cuts in homebuilding and in related activi

The Wall Street Journal speculates on whether Bernanke is about to be kicked out of the FED after a new President takes over. A significant economic recovery this year could bolster Mr. Bernanke's credibility with Wall Street and the public. But continued turmoil, with fluctuating financial markets and a surge in unemployment, could increase the chances he will be replaced. Most Fed-watchers

  75 Basis Point Rate Cut Saved Me Only my USD position was stopped out yesterday, with a close call on EWW & IYR. Before the rate cut announcement came, the DJIA was down 600 points in Pre-market trading and I was pretty much sure that I was going to get stopped out on a gap [...]

I don't have the academic credentials of the Fed chairman, but it seems pretty odd that every time the market is set to drop a significant amount, the Fed lowers rates either on the Funds rate or the discount window. Stocks were tanking in August 2007, so the Fed cut the discount window rate by .5%. In mid September 2007, with the market tanking again, the Fed cut rates by .5%.Yesterday markets around the world swooned. The DJIA, Nasdaq, and S&P futures indicated a big drop here. So what happens before the market opens? Bernanke cuts rates by .75%.The cut can't be any more blatantly tied to the stock market. But is the Fed supposed to be worried about the stock market, or the general economy? Granted, the stock market influences the economy and the economy influences the stock market,

This just out but I wonder if the tired 'tax cuts for the rich' will be the answer again?President Bush and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Thursday embraced calls for an economic stimulus package to avert recession. Bernanke said such a plan should be quickly implemented and temporary so that it won't complicate longer-term fiscal challenges. The Fed chief, in testimony to the House Budget Committee, did not embrace any specific provisions or a specific plan. Rather, he spoke to the general concept of an economic rescue package. It is likely that any such package would include tax rebates."Fiscal action could be helpful in principle" and may provide "broader support for the economy" than the Fed can furnish alone through reductions in interest rates, Bernanke said. However, he al

Much has been said about Bernanke & Co. the past four months. Despite it all, this is the truest test of his Chairmanship to date. On Friday consumer inflation numbers were released. The CPI jumped 0.8% in November, crushing October's 0.3% rise. It was largest increase since September 2005. The core CPI, excluding volatile food and energy prices, advanced 0.3%, it biggest rise since January. The results passed Wall Street forecasts of a 0.6% headline CPI increase and 0.2% core gain. Now,... Continued at Todd Sullivan's ValuePlays

Alan Greenspan Was Incompetent And Ben Bernanke Only Knows Academics - Not Reality. Barron’s Economics Editor Gene Epstein looks at the Federal Reserve’s role in the housing crisis. No Tags

Confidence in Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's performance and abilities has clearly been shaken in recent months.Whether it was his inability to see the sheer enormity of the housing-mortgage debacle even as late as this July, or the blurting out of a proposal to temporarily increase the conforming loan limit, a limit utilized by government agencies that are tasked to promote "affordable" housing, to "$1 million" or his casual but confident dismissal of any concern related to the potential risks posed by a historically weak dollar, Bernanke has now clearly shown a pattern of ineffectiveness and poor perspective.Add to that this following excerpt from yesterday's meeting on proposed rule changes for the mortgage industry."The housing and mortgage sectors in recent years have benefited from a remarkable wave of financial innovation. The advent of large secondary markets and the use of automated underwriting [inaudible], for instance, have driven more capital to the

Ron Paul has recently been generating hundreds of thousands of hits on YouTube because of videos with him and Ben Bernanke. The videos feature Paul at House committee meetings grilling the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on our nation's monetary policies. I was not surprised at all to learn that House committee meetings were generating such vast amounts of hits on YouTube because I know how interesting they can be. Wait…I think only people like me that watch C-Span would find that interesting. The title of one of the videos that was posted is called "Ron Paul Ownz the Federal Reserve" A second round of Paul's questioning that was posted on YouTube is called "Ron Paul Schools Ben Bernanke Again". "Our monetary system insidiously transfers wealth from the poor and the middleclass to the privileged rich. Wages never keep up with profits on Wall Street and the banks, thus sowing the seeds of class and discontent," Paul said. "When eco

Oh that Ben Bernanke, aka Boom Boom, aka Helicopter Ben, aka Big Baller, aka credit liquidity magician. After talking to the market with a stern voice and demonstrating that he does have some restraint with rate cuts, he follows the next day by opening up a corner loan shark store. While they don't have a problem having troubled buyers calling up a toll free number and opening up their financial books as if it were a therapy session, they want to keep a lid on what is going on with troubled banks: "Some market observers suggested that banks would likely be to able to avoid the so-called stigma associated with the discount rate and borrow money through the auction process at a lower rate than the discount rate" After all, you wouldn't want to hang out with a schizophrenic bank and have your friends and family start whispering behind your back. So even though the discount rate only saw a .25 basis-point cut, we now realize that many beleaguered banks can go even further off

Alan Greenspan, chairman of the Federal Reserve from 1987 to 2006, current President of Greenspan LLC and author of The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World, tells current chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Shalom Bernanke that his rate cuts are not going to have the intended effect. Writing in the Wall Street Journal, probably in response to the Fed's decision to lower its benchmark

Nov. 30 - U.S. stocks ended a strong week in mixed fashion as the Dow and S&P 500. The Dow climbed almost 60 points to 13,371. The S&P 500 rose 11 points to 1,481. The Nasdaq fell 7... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

HONG KONG, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Asian stocks extended gains on Friday after comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke reinforced expectations that the U.S. central bank was willing to lower... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Another week of crazy market gyrations brought about by "Helicopter Ben Bernanke" and his merry men of the Fed. It really does look as though the old Greenspan trick of lowering interest rates to pick up the economy is past its sell by date.

Os indicadores da economia norte-americana continuam a mostrar resiliência, mas o crescimento no próximo trimestre deverá apresentar uma desaceleração visível frente ao registrado no período anterior, afirmou o presidente do Banco Central norte-americano, Ben Bernanke, ao Congresso norte-americano nesta quinta-feira (8). Segundo Bernanke, desde o seu último testemunho no Congresso em março deste ano, o núcleo [...]

Bond traders cheer Paul's walloping of the Fed Chairman:ABC News runs a decent piece on it, though I quarrel with two items:"But when Paul squared off with Bernanke, things were a bit different. More like Bernanke was dealing with a combative grad student during office hours at Princeton."Paul may not have a Ph.D. in economics, but he is educated. What's going on in the exchange is you have two very different schools of thought that often talk past each other. Bernanke is the econometrician; scientistic and empirical, he loves data and statistics and believes that if you push Button A and pull Lever B, the economy will dutifully respond as it should. Paul adheres to the deductive a priori reasoning that is characteristic of Austrian economics, where one begins with economic laws and follows a chain of logic.Toward the end of the piece, speculation is offered as to the scant coverage of the clash:"It was an interesting exercise in theory, but Paul, even if he were to be elected presid

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the U.S. economy has remained resilient in the face of credit market strains. Bernanke said that when Fed policy-makers met last week, they saw what he called 'important upside risks' to inflation

Ron Paul demolishes the fallacy of our monetary policy and takes Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke to school for trying to solve the current crisis with more inflation. Bernanke, the consummate technocrat, can only respond with a typically fuzzy non-answer:First of all, can you imagine any of the other candidates for president talking in any meaningful, intelligent way about monetary policy? I can't. If they know the first thing about it, they certainly don't give any indication. If the subject were ever to come up in a real debate, I'm certain we'd get a lot of blank faces, blinking, and talk-around gibberish. This raises another depressing question: does it matter? We seem to require very little in the way of knowledgeableness from our 'leaders' these days (for evidence one need only look at Rudy The Terrorist Fighter's complete ignorance of the 9/11 Commission Report and relevant scholarship).About inflation, Bernanke avers:"If somebody has their wealth in dollars and they are going

Some highlights from Bernanke's testimony to congress today. "Although the problems with subprime mortgages initiated the financial turmoil, credit concerns quickly spilled over into a number of other areas. Importantly, the secondary market for securities backed by prime jumbo mortgages also contracted, and the issuance of such securities has declined significantly. Prime jumbo loans are still being made to prospective home purchasers, but they are at higher spreads and have... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Columbia Business School Spring 2006 Follies spoof on The Police's "Every Breath You Take" featuring imitation Dean Glenn Hubbard and Fed Chairman Ben Bernankehttp://feeds.feedburner.com/bursa88bursamalaysia

On Monday, Bloomberg caught up with legendary commodities investor Jim Rogers in London. Bloomberg’s Sal Giangrasso interviewed George Soros’ former partner, who told listeners that the September interest rate cut was “a mistake” which the Federal Reserve might repeat again on Wednesday. Rogers claims that the Fed does not care about the U.S. dollar and want it to decline. He also notes that despite their actions, long-term interest rates aren’t going down. As a result, Rogers says: This is a disaster for the United States. I would urge everybody listening to your show to figure out ways to start getting money out of the U.S. dollar. I’m certainly doing it. The chairman of Beeland Interests also had this to say about Federal Reserve chair Ben Bernanke: I know that the mandate of the Federal Reserve was to maintain a sound currency. We now have a madman at the head of the Federal Reserve whose main goal, whose whole intellectual career is studying the printing of money. Now

In a speech in New York, the Fed chairman said the central bank's big interest rate cut last month has helped but that the Fed can't 'insulate investors from risk.'October 15 2007: 10:24 PM EDTNEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- In a speech to the New York Economic Club Monday night, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the central bank's rate cut in September has shown signs of success, but cautioned that lenders and investors must bear responsibility for financial decisions that caused the subprime mortgage meltdown."Although the Federal Reserve can seek to provide a more stable economic background that will benefit both investors and non-investors, the truth is that it can hardly insulate investors from risk, even if it wished to do so," Bernanke said, adding that "over the past few months...those who made bad investment decisions lost money."The Fed slashed the federal funds rate, a key short-term interest rate that impacts rates on consumer loans, by a half of a percentage point

Treasury prices closed higher Tuesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson both warned of continuing economic weakness linked to housing and credit problems.Paulson said Tuesday the contraction in residential real estate has gone on longer than expected and will hurt the economy and markets for months to come. He described housing as the "most significant" risk to the economy.Bernanke late Monday warned that a deepening housing slump probably will put a "significant drag" on economic growth into next year. He also said it will take time for Wall Street to fully recover from the recent credit crisis.However, Bernanke also pledged to "act as needed" to help financial markets function smoothly and keep the economy and inflation on an even keel. That remark suggests the Fed could soon deliver the rate cut the market wants, but it was hardly a promise."I think that people of the opinion that there will be no rate cut at the October meeting could c

By Craig Torres and Vivien Lou ChenOct. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the outlook for the U.S. economy is ``uncertain'' and policy makers will do what's needed to secure growth and contain prices.The housing slump will likely be a ``significant drag'' on growth into next year, though evidence of a broader impact on spending is limited, Bernanke said in a speech to the Economic Club of New York today.Credit markets have improved, the Fed chairman added, though a full recovery will take time ``and we may well see some setbacks.''Bernanke's speech, his first on the economy since August, comes as investors pared expectations for an interest-rate cut this month. Retail sales increased in September and jobs and wages advanced, suggesting consumers are weathering the worst housing slump since 1991 and reduced access to credit.The Fed chief, as Vice Chairman Donald Kohn did two weeks ago, pointed out risks to both growth and inflation, declining to ste

There were a lot of really great and informative video segments this week covering topics ranging from the Fed’s effectiveness and the outlook for inflation to regional accounts of housing stress to the forthcoming emergency actions by the federal government in response to the calamitous fall off in the housing and mortgage markets.First, in one of the numerous Greenspan interviews this week, the former Federal Reserve Chairman suggested that we are now beyond the era of favorable interest rates and further that the 10 year note will be heading up to 8%.Watch Greenspan Talk Doom on BNN!In an interview with a somewhat ornery but VERY informative Jim Rogers of Beeland Interests, Rogers suggests that the Fed is irrelevant in that they, in his view, generally move after market turmoil has occurred. Rogers also points out astutely that the current market conditions shouldn’t qualify as being termed a “crisis” the as all the major indexes are only 4% – 6% below their all time high

Yesterday, the US market continued to witness a further deterioration. The USD fell again, setting a fresh record low mainly against the EUR and the CAD. Growing concerns about the US economy and the possibility of further interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve are the main reasons behind the US dollar’s continuous weakness. The USD is trading around the 1.4095 level against the EUR. Yesterday, trader’s attention was focused primarily on the Fed Chairman’s Bernanke Speech in front of the U.S Congress. Bernanke told Congress that the credit crisis has created a “significant market stress”, but reassured that regulators would take steps to curb fallout due to the mortgage crisis. Fed Chairman’s Speech came just two days after the Federal Reserve cut a key interest rate by 0.5% in order to prevent the weight of housing and credit problems from sinking the economy. The Greenback weakness continues to dominate financial markets as last day’s headline

Ron Paul and Ben Bernanke exchange a few words today on Capital Hill regarding Fed Reserve policy, the state of the economy and your dollar purchasing power... (courtesy of Ron Paul Audio) click play and have a listen... Bernanke's Bullet Misses The Markby Mish's Global Economic Analysis - 9/20/07 snip:List of What's Changed: Perception has changed. Any perception of the Fed as being concerned about inflation went out the window. Any perception of the Fed as being concerned about the dollar went out the window. Bulls are happiest they have been in months. The stock market is higher. Gold is higher. Oil is higher. The Prime Rate dropped 50 basis points. List of What Hasn't Changed: Mortgage Rates. (Actually mortgage rates rose since last week as the chart below shows). Auto Loan Rates. Nearly identical to last week. Home Equity Loan Rates. Nearly identical to last week. The outlook for jobs. (If anything the outlook is weaker judging from the Fed's panic). Credit Card Interest Rate

To Bail or Not To Bail… That is the Question!So here we are, waiting on pins and needles for the decision that many hope will rescue the markets from themselves.Seems like a fairly intrusive action considering that only a month ago this “crisis” wasn’t even acknowledged by the Federal Reserve who, to this day, still insinuates that the housing recession will stay mostly contained.Why all the fervent action?Whatever happened to the Federal Reserve being more efficient at “mopping up” the aftermath of market turmoil rather than attempting to prevent it as Ben Bernanke himself suggested back in 2002?The risks of responding so quickly lies not only in creating a “moral hazard” for market participants as they learn to rely on the Feds rescue actions but it may possibly turn the Fed into a “paper tiger” should things continue to worsen.This brings up another point.It seems to me that today’s pending rate cut action (which, as of this writing, is still an educated guess