Ben Bernanke
Ben Bernanke
Ben Shalom Bernankeis an American economist at the Brookings Institution who served two terms as chairman of the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States, from 2006 to 2014. During his tenure as chairman, Bernanke oversaw the Federal Reserve's response to the late-2000s financial crisis. Before becoming Federal Reserve chairman, Bernanke was a tenured professor at Princeton University and chaired the department of economics there from 1996 to September 2002, when he went on public service leave...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionPolitician
Date of Birth13 December 1953
CityAugusta, GA
CountryUnited States of America
Although the U.S. economy has managed modest real growth through 2002 and into 2003, most economists agree that a strong and well-balanced recovery will require a greater contribution from the business sector, in the form of increased capital investment and hiring,
Although I expect policy to follow the usual gradualist pattern, the pace of tightening will of necessity respond to evolving economic conditions, particularly the strength of the ongoing recovery in the labor market and developments on the inflation front,
Until the job market improves, this recovery will not feel like a recovery to most Americans,
We benefit from foreign direct investment. Many Americans are employed by foreign companies with plants in the United States, for example in the automobile industry. So, trade is a two way street. I think, it is important to protect Americans who lose their jobs, or whose jobs come under pressure from international trade. But, I think, we need to be careful not to embrace economic isolationism.
In the shorter term, the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina will have a palpable effect on the national economy.
I personally would have preferred if the Fed had been a little less aggressive.
Clearly it's going to affect the Gulf Coast economy quite a bit. You've had a lot of property damage. Basic services are down.
Clearly, it's going to affect the Gulf Coast economy quite a bit,
Clear communication is always important in central banking, but it can be especially important when economic conditions call for further policy stimulus but the policy rate is already at its effective lower bound.
High energy prices are burdening household budgets and raising production costs, and continued increases would at some point restrain economic growth.
can account for the bulk of the recent increase in the real price of gold.
In these circumstances, the FOMC judged that some further firming of monetary policy may be necessary, an assessment with which I concur.
Interest rates are used to achieve overall economic stability.
In the absence of a shift in market perceptions of the relative attractiveness of U.S. and foreign assets, government policies would likely have only limited effects on the trade balance.