Bernanke: Recession likely if Congress doesn’t act

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: July 17, 2012
Tags: Ben Bernanke, bond purchase, borrowing, Congress, congressional budget office, democrats, Economy, european debt crisis, federal reserve, growth, interest rates, investors, Manufacturing, politics, republicans, Senate Banking Committee, Stocks, tax cuts, tax hikes

WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke painted a dark picture of where the U.S. economy is headed if Congress fails to reach agreement soon to avert a budget crisis. “It would probably knock the recovery back into a recession and cost a lot of jobs, and would greatly delay the recovery that we’re hoping [...]

Cheaper gas keeps consumer prices flat

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: July 17, 2012
Tags: Ben Bernanke, consumer prices, consumers, Energy, federal reserve, food, food prices, gas, growth, hiring, inflation, interest rates, Labor Department, money, Retail

WASHINGTON — Consumer prices were unchanged in June, held down by cheaper gas. Outside the volatile food and energy categories, inflation was mild. Weak economic growth is limiting the ability of companies to raise prices. The tame inflation was underscored by a 0.2 percent drop in consumer prices for the April-June period as a whole. [...]

Employers add 80,000 jobs as economy struggles

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: July 6, 2012
Tags: Ben Bernanke, China, consumers, Economy, employees, employers, European Central Bank, federal reserve, hiring, interest rates, job market, jobs, Labor Department, mitt romney, president barack obama, Stocks, Unemployment, unemployment rate, wages

WASHINGTON — The American job machine has jammed. Again. The economy added only 80,000 jobs in June, the government said Friday, erasing any doubt that the United States is in a summer slump for the third year in a row. “Let’s just agree: This number stinks,” said Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist at the investment [...]

Carmakers report strong June sales, easing worries

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: July 3, 2012
Tags: buyers, cars, chevrolet, chrysler, dodge, electric car, escape, fiat, ford, gas prices, interest rates, nissan, pickup trucks, sales, suv, toyota, vehicles, volkswagen

DETROIT — From mini cars to monster pickups, sales of vehicles charged higher in June and eased concerns that Americans would be turned off by slower hiring and other scary headlines. Automakers reported big gains over June of last year. Chrysler posted its best June in five years. Sales surged at Volkswagen, which is on [...]

Fed extends ‘Twist’ program to drive rates lower

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: June 20, 2012
Tags: borrowing, chairman ben bernanke, debt crisis, DMJ Advisors, Economy, federal reserve, interest rates, LPL Financia, operation twist, stock market, united states

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve acted Wednesday to lift an economy that’s being held back by a weakened job market. It’s extending a program designed to spur borrowing and spending through lower long-term U.S. interest rates. The Fed also reiterated its plan to keep short-term rates at record lows until at least late 2014. And [...]

Bernanke signals no imminent steps to aid economy

BY: Danny Jacobs
POSTED: June 7, 2012
Tags: Ben Bernanke, bonds, Congress, Economy, election, euro, european debt crisis, fed, federal reserve, financial markets, growth, interest rates, jobs, president barack obama, rates, stimulus

WASHINGTON — Chairman Ben Bernanke said the Federal Reserve is prepared to take further steps to lift the U.S. economy if it weakens. But he didn’t signal any imminent action in testimony before a congressional panel Thursday. Bernanke said the European debt crisis poses significant risks to the U.S. financial markets. And he noted that [...]

Robert Nusgart – European woes offer yet another chance to refinance 

BY: Robert Nusgart
POSTED: June 6, 2012
Tags: america, bonds, crisis, debt, Economy, europe, fha, fixed mortgage, interest rates, loan, Robert Nusgart, treasury

Thank you Greece. Thank you Spain. Thank you Portugal. Thank you for fueling the European debt debacle that continues to make the American bond market a haven for skittish investors looking for a “flight to safety” for their money. And when that happens, bond prices move up and yields move down and before you know [...]

Hiring slows sharply as economy looks weaker

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: June 1, 2012
Tags: business confidence, consumer confidence, Economy, employers, employment, europe, gold, hiring, interest rates, jobs, Labor Department, mitt romney, president barack obama, treasury note, Unemployment

WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy suddenly looks a lot weaker. U.S. employers created only 69,000 jobs in May, the fewest in a year, and the unemployment rate ticked up. The dismal jobs data will fan fears that the economy is sputtering. It could also damage President Barack Obama’s re-election prospects. And it could lead the [...]

Sales contracts for homes dropped in April

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: May 30, 2012
Tags: americans, contract signings, contracts, Economy, home prices, homes, housing market, interest rates, job market, jobs, mortgage rates, National Association of Realtors, purchaes, sales, sales agreements, Unemployment

WASHINGTON — A gauge of Americans who signed contracts to buy homes fell in April from nearly a two-year high in the previous month. The decline was the biggest in a year. Still, sales are well ahead of last year’s level for the same month, suggesting the housing market is improving slowly. The National Association [...]

U.S. bank earnings rose this winter to 5-year high

BY: Associated Press
POSTED: May 24, 2012
Tags: bank, bank of america corp, Citigroup Inc., earnings, Economy, FDIC, FDIC Chairman Martin Gruenberg, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., housing market, industry, interest rates, JPMorgan Chase & Co., revenue, rose, united states, wells fargo & co

WASHINGTON — U.S. bank earnings rose in the first three months of the year to the highest level in nearly five years and the number of troubled banks fell for the fourth straight quarter. The mostly positive first-quarter earnings released Thursday illustrate how far the banking industry has come since the 2008 financial crisis. Still, [...]

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