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Wall Street Journal
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Mar 18, 08 1:37 PM CDT
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The Federal Reserve today cut the federal funds rate by ¾ of a percentage point, from 3% to 2.25%, disappointing many investors who were hoping for a cut of a full point, reports the Wall Street Journal . The Fed voted 8-2 for the rate cut. "Recent information indicates that the outlook for economic activity has weakened further," the central bank said in a statement, adding it will take further action when needed.
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Bloomberg
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Mar 18, 08 11:55 AM CDT
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Housing starts fell yet again in February, and building permits hit a 16-year low, Bloomberg reports. The annual housing start rate fell to 1.065 million homes, a 0.6% drop from January, while permits sank 7.8%, indicating still bigger declines to come. “We don’t see it bottoming out,” said one Wachovia economist. February’s starts beat estimates, but permits fell more than forecast.
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Bloomberg
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Mar 18, 08 10:35 AM CDT
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Ben Bernanke has the savvy to inject enough liquidity into the US economy to push it through the current credit crisis, says a leading economist who advised the Fed chief's MIT doctoral thesis. “The Fed will get on top of this,” said Stanley Fischer, ahead of this afternoon's meeting in which the board was expected to announce a rate cut of up to 1%.
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Associated Press
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Mar 16, 08 7:21 PM CDT
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The Federal Reserve raced to buck up an anxious financial sector today by cutting its discount rate to banks by a quarter point, to 3.25%, the AP reports. It also created a new lending facility to aid investment banks with short-term loans. The moves are "designed to bolster market liquidity and promote orderly market functioning," the Fed said. "Liquid well-functioning markets are essential for the promotion of economic growth."
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New York Times
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Mar 16, 08 9:19 AM CDT
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With a recession and worsening meltdown on Wall Street looming, Fed chief Ben Bernanke has dumped textbook central bank economic policy, reports the New York Times. Last week's bailout of Bear Stearns, for example, seemed to fly in the face of his previous reluctance to rescue big institutions. And it came in the same week the Fed made $200 billion available to investment banks and another $100 billion for banks and thrifts.
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Associated Press
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Mar 14, 08 3:00 PM CDT
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The economy is experiencing difficulties, but President Bush said today he is certain a recovery will come soon, the AP reports. “In a free-market economy there will be good times and bad times” he said in a speech to the Economic Club of New York. “We’re going through a hard time.” Democrats wasted little time in rebutting, dispatching Chuck Schumer to invoke Herbert Hoover.
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New York Times
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Mar 14, 08 12:30 PM CDT
(Newser) -
A perfect storm of economic maladies has the US economy reeling on the edge of recession and officials struggling to limit the damage it causes, reports the New York Times. But many economists say there isn’t much the government or policy makers can do besides batten down the hatches and, in the words of a Charles Schwab analyst, “let the system wash it out.”
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Wall Street Journal
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Mar 13, 08 5:00 PM CDT
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A cascade of bleak financial news has convinced most economists in a Wall Street Journal poll that the US is already in a recession. The results are markedly more negative than a similar survey only five weeks ago, and much of the foul mood can be traced to last week’s dismal employment report. “The evidence is now beyond a reasonable doubt,” said one. Of the 51 economists polled, 71% said recession had arrived.
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BBC
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Mar 13, 08 1:03 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Gold hit $1,000 per ounce for the first time today, the BBC reports, as investors flock to commodities. The precious metal is already up 20% on the year. “Every bit of bad US economic data boosts gold in two ways,” said Fortis Bank, both because gold is a “safe haven” asset and because the dollar drops on expectations of US interest-rate cuts.
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Wall Street Journal
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Mar 13, 08 6:51 AM CDT
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A panel led by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is seeking a major overhaul of rules affecting mortgage lenders and a credit market decimated by risky subprime loans and loose oversight, the Wall Street Journal r eports. Among panel recommendations to be released today: Strengthen mortgage lender and broker oversight Establish licensing standards for mortgage brokers
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Wall Street Journal
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Mar 12, 08 3:38 PM CDT
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Markets shot up early today, then flattened out and ended down as record oil and gas prices put a damper on things. Per-barrel oil prices hit $110.20 before landing at $109.92, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow ended down 46.57 to 12,110.24, the Nasdaq 11.89 to 2,243.87 and the S&P 11.88 to 1,308.77.
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Associated Press
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Mar 11, 08 10:15 AM CDT
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The Fed will inject huge quantities of cash into financial markets as part of a coordinated global attack on the credit crisis, Ben Bernanke announced today. The central bank will loan out another $200 billion, this time on a 28-day basis rather than overnight, the AP reports. The effort will coordinate with the European Central Bank and the central banks of Canada, England, and Switzerland.
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Bloomberg
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Mar 7, 08 12:02 PM CST
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The Federal Reserve will lend more money to banks in March in a bid to ease the worsening credit crisis, Bloomberg reports. By dramatically increasing the funds available in two upcoming auctions—from $30 billion to $50 billion—the Fed hopes to convince banks to loosen up and lend more.
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Bloomberg
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Mar 7, 08 7:58 AM CST
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The US lost 63,000 jobs in February, the second straight month payrolls contracted and the worst drop since 2003, catching economists off guard and fanning fears of recession anew, Bloomberg reports. Economists hoped the economy would add 23,000 jobs after declining a modest 17,000 in January, when the unemployment rate rose to 4.9%.
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