Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke hasn’t a clue and this is who is the head of the Federal Reserve. “Bernanke told reporters Wednesday that the central bank had been caught off guard by recent signs of deterioration in the economy. And he said the troubles could continue into next year.” Does this tell you anything about the lack of real wisdom the idiots in charge of our money and economy possess? Scary, aye? It doesn’t surprise me that the economy isn’t rebounding. Keynesian economics, A.K.A. stimulus, A.K.A. Communism does not work, it never has, and it never will. And this is the communist junk economics they teach in the colleges of the USA. This is what Geitner and the rest of the ill-taught robots learned and they’re sticking with it, to the bitter end of the USA and every dollar and every worth-while job in the USA! Welcome to the United states of Communism. Bernie (comment from the man who emailed in this article.)WASHINGTON (AP) – The economy’s continuing struggles aren’t just confounding ordinary Americans. They’ve also stumped the head of the Federal Reserve.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke told reporters Wednesday that the central bank had been caught off guard by recent signs of deterioration in the economy. And he said the troubles could continue into next year.
“We don’t have a precise read on why this slower pace of growth is persisting,” Bernanke said. He said the weak housing market and problems in the banking system might be “more persistent than we thought.”
The Fed cut its forecast for economic growth this year to a range of 2.7 percent to 2.9 percent from an April forecast of 3.1 percent to 3.3 percent. It also cut its forecast for next year to a range of 3.3 percent to 3.7 percent from an earlier 3.5 percent to 4.2 percent. The Fed also said unemployment would stay higher than it had expected earlier.
The economic news has been gloomy. The government reported that the economy grew at an annual rate of only 1.8 percent in the first three months of the year. It isn’t expected to grow much faster in the current quarter. The economy added 54,000 jobs in May, far fewer than in the previous two months. Consumer spending has weakened, too.
The bad economic news is taking a political toll on President Barack Obama. For the first time this year, an Associated Press-GfK poll found that fewer than 50 percent of respondents believe Obama deserves re-election. Obama’s overall approval rating fell to 52 percent in the new poll. It had risen as high as 60 percent after the U.S. raid last month in Pakistan that killed Osama bin Laden.
The new Fed statement acknowledged a slowdown over the past two months. “They see the weakness,” said Bruce McCain, chief investment strategist at Key Private Bank. “You can hear their concern about economic weakness despite their hope it is likely to be temporary.”
The Fed stuck to its plan to bring an end this month to a program to help the economy by buying $600 billion in government bonds. The Fed also intends to keep short-term interest rates near zero “for an extended period,” a phrase it has been using the past two years. Though the central bank noted that inflation has risen, it expects that to be temporary as well.
The Fed has kept rates at ultra-low levels since December 2008. Abandoning the promise to keep them there for an “extended period” would be viewed as a signal that the Fed is preparing to raise interest rates. Many private economists think it will be another full year before the economy has recovered enough for the Fed to do it.
“There’s no obvious hint of tightening here,” said Jim O’Sullivan, chief economist at MF Global. “There’s no hint of new easing.”
The bond-buying program has been controversial. Supporters say the bond purchases have kept interest rates low and encouraged spending. Low long-term rates make it easier to buy homes and cars and for companies to expand.
This article has been severely snipped. Read more: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20110622/D9O16AK02.html
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