Ben Bernanke

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Fed Holds Line on Interest Rates; Markets Bounce

Committee leaves rate at 2%, confounding investors' expectations

(Newser) - In its first unanimous interest rate decision in a year, the Federal Reserve voted today to leave its key interest rate unchanged at 2%. The decision reflects regulators' unwillingness to get even more involved in the developments roiling the financial markets, the Wall Street Journal reports. Stocks fell triple-digits on...

Feds, Banks Seek Lehman Deal by Tonight

BofA, Barclays balk at bad assets, but bailout not in the cards

(Newser) - Washington and Wall Street continued talks today aimed at solving the Lehman Brothers crisis as early as tonight, the Wall Street Journal reports. Federal Reserve officials still refuse to approve a bailout like the one that enabled JP Morgan to acquire Bear Stearns this summer—but possible buyers like Bank...

Senator: Fire 'Socialist' Paulson
Senator: Fire 'Socialist' Paulson
Sep 9, 2008 5:45 PM CDT

Senator: Fire 'Socialist' Paulson

Ky.'s Bunning appears to have problem with Fannie/Freddie move

(Newser) - Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson saved Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but now he may have to worry about saving his own job: One Republican senator called his policies socialist and recommended that he and Fed chief Ben Bernanke resign, Bloomberg reports. “They have taken the free market out of...

Feds Outline Fannie, Freddie Bailout

Gov't will step in as conservator; Treasury will buy preferred stock

(Newser) - Citing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as "critical to turning the corner on housing," Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson this morning announced a bailout of the beleaguered mortgage companies that includes his agency purchasing preferred stock, while the Federal Housing Finance Agency will step in as conservator. Additionally, Treasury...

Lower Oil, Inflation Rally Stocks
 Lower Oil, Inflation Rally Stocks
MARKETS
Aug 22, 2008 3:36 PM CDT

Lower Oil, Inflation Rally Stocks

Fed chief soothes markets; Lehman may have a buyer

(Newser) - Stocks rallied today amid light trading but still saw weekly losses as oil prices fell and financials rebounded, helped in part by a speech by Ben Bernanke that eased inflation fears, MarketWatch reports. The Dow surged 197.85 to 11,628.06; the Nasdaq gained 34.33, closing at 2,...

Dow Skyrockets as Oil Retreats
 Dow Skyrockets as Oil Retreats 
MARKETS
Aug 5, 2008 3:23 PM CDT

Dow Skyrockets as Oil Retreats

Deep-seated concerns about economy remain

(Newser) - Stocks rallied today after the Fed said it would keep money cheap for the time being and crude prices fell to below $120 a barrel, a 3-month low. The Dow gained 330.80 to close at 11,614.95, the Nasdaq rose 64.27 to 2,349.83, and the...

Fed Again Leaves Funds Rate at 2%
Fed Again Leaves Funds Rate at 2%
Aug 5, 2008 2:07 PM CDT

Fed Again Leaves Funds Rate at 2%

Decision aimed at balancing inflation, economic worries

(Newser) - The Federal Reserve declared today that it was keeping its target for the federal funds rate, the interest that banks charge each other, at 2%. Confronted with the perils of a slumping US economy and rising inflation, the Fed decided for a second consecutive meeting to leave interest rates unchanged....

Say Goodbye to the Reagan Revolution
Say Goodbye
to the Reagan Revolution
Jul 25, 2008 11:18 AM CDT

Say Goodbye to the Reagan Revolution

Leaders abandon deregulation for a hands on approach

(Newser) - The Reagan Revolution, which ushered in a quarter century of deregulation, looks as if it's taken a stake in the heart, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Fed is offering tens of billions in emergency loans to failing banks, the SEC wants more power to regulate financial institutions, and the...

Fed's Broader Portfolio Raises Some Worries

Central bank appears deft so far, but crisis could stretch it thinner

(Newser) - Ben Bernanke has been busy recently—too busy, in the minds of some. The chairman has expanded the Federal Reserve's role beyond traditional monetary policymaker to being an all-purpose protector of the financial system. Many of his dramatic moves—the Bear Stearns buyout, backstopping Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac—averted...

Consumer Prices Surge Most Since '91
 Consumer Prices
 Surge Most Since '91 
Economy
Jul 16, 2008 9:35 AM CDT

Consumer Prices Surge Most Since '91

Consumer prices up 1.1%; wholesale up 1.8%.

(Newser) - Consumer prices rose a staggering 1.1% in June, Bloomberg reports. The figure far surpassed analyst estimates, and brings the year-over-year figure to 5%–the biggest surge since 1991. Core inflation, which excludes food and energy, rose a more-than-expected 0.3%. “Inflation has galloped,” one economist said. “...

'No Immediate Plans' to Prop Up Freddie/Fannie: Paulson

Bernanke gives gloomy outlook for rest of 2008, but raises growth forecast

(Newser) - The US government won't be lending capital to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the near future, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told a Senate committee today. "There are no immediate plans to access either the proposed liquidity or the proposed capital backstop,'' Paulson said, and any lending to...

Paulson's Imprimateur on Freddie/Fannie Rescue

Madcap weekend recasts Treasury Secretary in Clintonian mold

(Newser) - Henry Paulson had a very busy weekend. The treasury secretary had been formulating contingency plans for bailing out beleaguered Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for weeks, but Friday’s crisis came before those plans were in place, the Wall Street Journal reports in a reconstruction of events leading to the...

Stocks Surge on Oil, Fed News
 Stocks Surge on Oil, Fed News 
MARKETS
Jul 8, 2008 3:38 PM CDT

Stocks Surge on Oil, Fed News

Bernanke's comments encourage the battered financial sector

(Newser) - The markets made strong gains today as crude futures fell more than $5 and the Fed took steps to shore up the housing market, MarketWatch reports. The Dow gained 152.25 points, its biggest jump in a month, to close at 11,384.21. The Nasdaq rose 51.10 points...

Fed to Crack Down on Subprime Loans

Also plans to extend low-cost overnight loan program for banks

(Newser) - The Federal Reserve will issue new rules next week restricting subprime lending and other exotic loans aimed at borrowers with weak credit, Ben Bernanke said today. He said the Fed is also considering extending the overnight low-cost loan program, which helps big banks in need of quick cash, a sign...

Fed Feared 'Contagion' If Bear Failed

Bernanke and crew felt they had to act, minutes show

(Newser) - If the Fed hadn't taken the unprecedented step of helping bail out Bear Stearns, a sweeping "contagion" would have doomed the markets, its members say. In newly released minutes from its March 16 meeting, the Fed reasons that the “prominent position of Bear Stearns” left it no choice...

Big Rally Ends in Modest Gains
 Big Rally Ends in Modest Gains  
MARKETS
Jun 25, 2008 3:36 PM CDT

Big Rally Ends in Modest Gains

Oil drop, Fed's confidence in growth not enough to preserve rise

(Newser) - The markets rallied for much of the day on news of ebbing oil prices and the Fed's decision to hold rates steady, but it fell mostly flat by the finish on nagging worries about long-term growth, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow—at one point up more than 100...

As Expected, Fed Holds Steady

Federal funds rate stays at 2% as bank ends 10-month run of cuts

(Newser) - The Federal Reserve decided today leave a key interest rate unchanged, bringing an end to a string of consecutive rate cuts aimed at keeping the country out of a deep recession. The federal funds rate will remain at 2%—the first time in 10 months the Fed has failed to...

Fed Likely to Hold Rates&mdash; for Now
Fed Likely to Hold Rates—
for Now
Jun 25, 2008 6:17 AM CDT

Fed Likely to Hold Rates— for Now

Bernanke hopes the 2% interbank rate will help economy rebound

(Newser) - Despite fears that inflationary forces are revving, the Federal Reserve will probably hold the interbank federal funds rate at 2% today, hoping the bargain basement rate can help kick-start a stalled economy that’s been hamstrung by a tenacious housing slump and a credit crunch hangover, Reuters reports.

Paulson Seeks Expanded Fed Powers

Treasury secretary says Fed role needs to be revised, upgraded to respond to risk

(Newser) - Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson today will urge Congress to broaden the Federal Reserve’s oversight role on Wall Street, giving it the authority to demand data from financial institutions to help prevent incidents like the Bear Stearns collapse. Any major change in regulatory authority would have to be approved by...

Oil Drives Uneven Finish
 Oil Drives Uneven Finish 
MARKETS
Jun 10, 2008 3:47 PM CDT

Oil Drives Uneven Finish

Bernanke comments spark inflation worries, perk up dollar

(Newser) - The markets ended mixed after moving between gains and losses, as traders tracked gyrations in the price of oil—which finished down 2% from earlier highs of $137 a barrel, MarketWatch reports. The Dow gained 9.44 to end at 12,289.76. The Nasdaq lost 10.52 to settle...

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