It’s a continued slow pace of recovery for the U.S. economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said in testimony today before the House Financial Services Committee. MarketWatch reports: At the moment, Fed officials see a recovery that “will likely remain moderate,” Bernanke said, with the unemployment rate falling “only gradually.” Inflation is expected to subside in coming months, he said. Fed officials have forecast that the economy will expand at around a 3.5% rate over the next 18 months and Bernanke said this remained the forecast. Bernanke also reiterated a line that …
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is due to deliver the Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to Congress today before the House Financial Services Committee. What will he say about unemployment, if anything at all? The stakes are high with Bernanke’s approval rating at an all-time low. The hearing starts at 10 a.m. The Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee will hold a joint hearing on tax reform and the tax treatment of debt and equity. Heritage’s Asian Studies Center will host a briefing on the Global Scope of Radical …
The U.S. economy continues to drag, but why’s the recovery going so slowly? The 13.9 million unemployed Americans aren’t the only ones who want to know. Yesterday, following a speech by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke (who described the economic recovery as “frustratingly slow”), JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon grabbed the microphone and asked Bernanke whether excessive government regulations are hampering the growth. Dimon said: I have this great fear that someone’s going to write a book in 10 or 20 years, and the book is going to talk …
The White House has indicated it intends to nominate San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Janet Yellen as Vice-Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board in Washington. The White House has said the top candidates for the two remaining Board slots are the relatively unknown attorney Sarah Raskin, Maryland’s Commissioner on Financial Regulation, and Peter Diamond, a well-known Social Security specialist from MIT. Yellen’s appointment is logical. A highly regarded macroeconomist who previously served as a member on the central bank’s board she is expected to perform the traditional roles of …
One of the larger mistakes in the Obama financial regulatory reform package was its attempt to give the Federal Reserve additional powers so that it could in theory protect the economy from risks such as the housing bubble that could endanger the entire financial system. As we have argued in the past, the entire concept of minimizing systemic risk is a thankless task that is probably impossible. A key question is how much power such a regulator would have. As we said in June, “Congress could grant it such wide …
Ben Bernanke made an important point while testifying before the House Budget Committee: lawmakers must reduce the federal deficit and return the nation to fiscal sustainability. The deficit, set to hit $1.8 trillion this year, is not expected to dip under $500 billion per year during the next decade, even under President Obama’s unusually optimistic economic forecast. Chairman Bernanke notes, “With the ratio of debt to GDP already elevated, we will not be able to continue borrowing indefinitely.” Put simply, the country is on a fiscally unsustainable path and action …
The House Budget Committee yesterday held a hearing, “Economic Recovery: Options and Challenges.” The headliner of the event, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, caused quite a stir with his near endorsement of a proposed second stimulus bill. However, others who spoke at the hearing, such as Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), and Bill Beach, director of Heritage’s Center for Data Analysis (CDA), raised important questions about the need for, and possible elements in a second stimulus bill. Ranking member Ryan’s opening statement regarding another stimulus bill appropriately warned against hastily increasing …
With the endorsement of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and lukewarm support from the White House, Congress appears intent on passing another economic stimulus bill, but before lawmakers rush back to Washington after Election Day, they ought to consider the differences between a good measure that helps the economy and one that might do more harm. Testifying yesterday before the House Budget Committee, Bill Beach of Heritage’s Center for Data Analysis explained the approach Congress should take as it considers legislation. Beach also appeared on PBS’ NewsHour last night. Here …
Following the testimony this morning of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, the House Budget Committee turned to three economists for their recommendations. Bill Beach, director of Heritage’s Center for Data Analysis, outlined his views on crafting a long-term, pro-growth economic policy. Here’s video of his opening statement: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIfVkAL55ck[/youtube]
Yesterday before the Joint Economic Committee, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke made a clear case as to why federal action is needed: home mortgages and car loans had become harder to get, commercial credit was becoming scarce for many businesses and consumer spending had already declined. Leaders in both parties know that inaction will hit Main Street hard. According to The Washington Post, public utility companies will have to raise rates to cover the increased costs of short-term borrowing, two-thirds of National Small Business Association members report feeling pressure from …
