Federal Reserve

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Economists See High Unemployment Through 2010

(Newser) - Economists think the US unemployment rate will stay above 9% through 2010, the Wall Street Journal survey finds. Accordingly, those in the know believe the Federal Reserve will hold interest rates down at least through spring. “For real people, there is no recovery until the unemployment rate stabilizes,”...

Net Worth of US Households Sinks Another $1.33T

(Newser) - The net worth of US households—assets minus debt—fell $1.33 trillion in the first quarter to $51.71 trillion, the Wall Street Journal reports. The 2.6% drop is smaller than the 8.6% of 2008’s fourth, a Fed report says. The first-quarter data don’t include...

Feds Put 'Gun to Head' of BofA's Lewis on Merger

(Newser) - Ben Bernanke and Henry Paulson may have leaned on Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis too heavily last year when he tried to back out of a deal to acquire Merrill Lynch, say congressional investigators. In fact, a GOP briefing document says the two Bush officals "put a gun...

New SEC Chair Stakes Out Her Territory

Schapiro moving decisively to overhaul troubled agency

(Newser) - As soon as she took over the SEC, Mary Schapiro started making changes. She scrapped rules that had hindered investigators, hired a new enforcement director, and refocused regulators on high-profile financial crisis-related cases. “I wanted to be clear from my first day—not just with words, which are pretty...

Bernanke Sees Slow Recovery, Despite Positive Signs

Still hopes economy will grow by year's end

(Newser) - The US has a long way to go before the economy returns to full health, despite hopeful signs, Ben Bernanke told the House budget committee today. “Recovery will only gradually gain momentum and that economic slack will diminish slowly,” the Fed chairman said. With businesses cautious, “the...

Merkel Rips the Fed for Deepening Crisis

German chancellor says central banks have made economy worse

(Newser) - World leaders rarely criticize central banks in public, but yesterday Angela Merkel laid into the Fed, the European Central Bank, and other institutions for deepening the global economic crisis. In a tough speech, the German chancellor claimed that the banks were too powerful, had acted too aggressively, and, in the...

Obama's Financial Regulation Plan Nearly Ready

(Newser) - The Obama administration is finalizing a legislative proposal that would strengthen the reach of financial regulatory agencies, the New York Times reports. The plan wouldn’t likely consolidate the four major bank regulators, which could meet with fierce opposition in Congress. “I don’t mind overlap as much as...

'F@$%! I Wish I'd Refinanced My House'

With mortgage rates rising, homeowners regret not acting sooner

(Newser) - Many homeowners are kicking themselves for not refinancing sooner now that mortgage rates are climbing, ABC News reports. “I was going to save $325 a month, and that covers all kind of things, from gas to groceries,” lamented one. “$325 is a lot of money.” And...

'Quiet Radical' Bernanke Reinvents Fed
'Quiet Radical' Bernanke Reinvents Fed
OPINION
May 28, 2009 8:22 AM CDT

'Quiet Radical' Bernanke Reinvents Fed

Low-key chair deserves chance to stay on, clean up: Ignatius

(Newser) - Barack Obama has a huge decision coming up this summer: whether to reappoint Ben Bernanke as chairman of the Fed or turn to obvious challenger Lawrence Summers. If he’s smart, he’ll stick with the soft-spoken incumbent, writes David Ignatius of the Washington Post. “He has been a...

White House Plans Unified Banking Regulator

New agency would replace hodgepodge of regulators blamed for financial crisis

(Newser) - The Obama administration is working on plans to create a single agency to do the work of the mishmash of regulators who failed to see the financial crisis coming, the Wall Street Journal reports. The new agency, which may be proposed to Congress next month, would strip powers from the...

Fed's Fears Push Dow Off 53
 Fed's Fears Push Dow Off 53 
MARKETS
May 20, 2009 3:11 PM CDT

Fed's Fears Push Dow Off 53

(Newser) - Markets fell today after the Federal Reserve warned of a more prolonged recession than it previously expected, the Wall Street Journal reports. Financials and tech contributed to the plunge, which even a 6-month high in oil prices could not stop. “We’re just dealing with a stock market that...

BofA Raises $13.5B With Share Sale
BofA Raises $13.5B
With Share Sale
May 20, 2009 4:55 AM CDT

BofA Raises $13.5B With Share Sale

Bank takes big stride towards meeting 'stress test' condition

(Newser) - Bank of America has sold shares to fill $13.5 billion of the $34 billion capital hole the Fed's "stress test" uncovered in the bank's balance sheet, Marketwatch reports. The bank—taking advantage of a 40% jump in its share price over the last month—issued 1.25 billion...

From Ashes of Recession, a Reshaped Fed Will Rise

The Fed stands to gain some powers and lose others

(Newser) - Among the myriad things that will be reshaped by the current economic crisis is the Federal Reserve, the Wall Street Journal reports. The steps the Fed has taken to stave off further economic turmoil have made it more vulnerable than it has been in years: If a lasting recovery takes...

Fed Knew of AIG Bonuses 5 Months Before Storm

Geithner's New York Fed planned for controversy in Sept. '08

(Newser) - Senior officials at the New York Federal Reserve knew about AIG's plans to pay large bonuses more than 5 months before controversy erupted, according to documents seen by the Washington Post. Correspondence and phone records show that the central bank was working with AIG, lawyers, auditors, and PR firms to...

US Weighs Shaving Bankers' Pay
US Weighs Shaving Bankers' Pay
May 13, 2009 5:17 AM CDT

US Weighs Shaving Bankers' Pay

Planned rules may apply to banks that weren't bailed out

(Newser) - The Obama administration has begun an ambitious project to overhaul compensation practices across the financial  sector, including at firms that received no bailout, reports the Wall Street Journal. The government may use the powers of the Fed or the SEC, as well as congressional legislation, to prevent banks from rewarding...

This Rally Is for Suckers, Courtesy of the Fed
This Rally Is for Suckers, Courtesy of the Fed
OPINION
May 12, 2009 9:37 AM CDT

This Rally Is for Suckers, Courtesy of the Fed

(Newser) - The Dow has soared a whopping 30% since March 9, but Andy Kessler doesn’t think the good times are here again. “This sure smells to me like a sucker’s rally,” he writes in the Wall Street Journal. Earnings aren’t up. The market is just responding...

Bernanke: Risks Remain Despite Stress Tests

But Fed chief is encouraged by bank response

(Newser) - Big banks' response to "stress tests" has been encouraging but they will need to watch out for risks not covered by the tests, Ben Bernanke warned regulators yesterday. The Fed chief—signaling that investment giants like Goldman Sachs can expect tighter scrutiny—said banks should self-test for potentially disastrous...

Under Pressure, Fed Cooked Some Stress Test Results

(Newser) - In the wake of reports that complaining banks cajoled the Federal Reserve into sweetening some stress test results, the Wall Street Journal looks at the hard numbers. Citigroup, for example, was originally supposed to raise $35 billion; the number eventually released was $5.5 billion. The total for Bank of...

Stress-Tested Banks Need Just $100B

Investors find causes for optimism in capitalization news

(Newser) - Leaked results of the stress tests on America's biggest banks separate sufficiently capitalized banks—including JPMorgan Chase, MetLife, AmEx, and Goldman Sachs—from underfunded ones such as BofA, Wells Fargo, and Citi. Bank shares rose sharply yesterday and today, and some investors said the results were better than they feared....

Private Equity Players Want In on Banking

Fed resists easing restrictions on risky, cash-rich enterprises

(Newser) - Even in the midst of the banking crisis, numerous entities are willing to buy the big banks, the New York Times reports. Private equity groups like J.C. Flowers & Company are itching to snap up the cash-strapped behemoths, but the Fed won’t let them. It’s worried that...

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