Saying that a return to recession “doesn’t seem likely”, US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke did not however rule out further Fed spending and quantitative easing. Pointing out lagging employment and weaker-than-expected growth, Bernanke made the case for an expansion of the $600 billion bond purchase program revealed last month.
“We’re not very far from the level where the economy is not self-sustaining,†Bernanke said in an interview broadcast yesterday by CBS Corp.’s “60 Minutes†program. “It’s very close to the border. It takes about 2.5 percent growth just to keep unemployment stable and that’s about what we’re getting.â€
Source: Bloomberg
