Full Text: Fed Chairman Bernanke Testimony to Senate Banking Committee – Feb. 24 – Monetary Policy Report to Congress
February 24, 2009 by Pelikan · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Ben Bernanke, U.S. Economy, U.S. Financial Crisis
Filed under: Ben Bernanke, U.S. Economy, U.S. Financial Crisis
(Source: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve)
Chairman Dodd, Senator Shelby, and members of the Committee, I appreciate the opportunity to discuss monetary policy and the economic situation and to present the Federal Reserve’s Monetary Policy Report to the Congress.
Recent Economic and Financial Developments and the Policy Responses
As you are aware, the U.S. economy is undergoing a severe contraction. Employment has fallen steeply since last autumn, and the unemployment rate has moved up to 7.6 percent. The deteriorating job market, considerable losses of equity and housing wealth, and tight lending conditions have weighed down consumer sentiment and spending.
