Frantically trying to stop the bleeding on Wall Street, the Federal Reserve took a first-time step Tuesday to get cash directly to businesses and hinted that interest rates could come down soon.
Asian stocks dropped sharply in Wednesday trading, after the Dow on Wall Street lost 500 points, closing at its lowest point in five years.
The Federal Reserve announced a new program to help the battered market for short-term business loans - taking its closest step yet to lending directly to businesses.
Wall Street's drubbing continued Tuesday, with a 500-point loss bringing the Dow's two-day slump to nearly 900 points, as the Federal Reserve's plan to loosen credit markets failed to temper investor pessimism.
The dollar sank against most foreign currencies Tuesday, as the still-frozen credit markets led a majority of investors to believe the Federal Reserve will step in with rate cuts, in addition to buying loans crucial to business.
Credit markets eased slightly Tuesday after the Federal Reserve announced plans to help unclog the pipeline by buying up short-term corporate debt that is typically used to cover day-to-day business expenses.
Even in the midst of a severe meltdown on Wall Street, Federal Reserve officials at their September meeting believed the risks from weaker growth and higher inflation were roughly equal.
Oil held its gains in volatile trading Tuesday, bouncing off an 8-month low on weakness in the dollar, but the advance was kept in check by falling stock prices.
After last week's political theater in Washington over the $700 billion bailout bill, the stock market's continuing woes have left many people shaking their heads
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke predicted that the global financial markets crisis is likely to restrain the economy well into next year and signaled that the Fed may be getting ready to cut interest rates.
Frantically trying to stop the bleeding on Wall Street, the Federal Reserve took a first-time step Tuesday to get cash directly to businesses and hinted that interest rates could come down soon.
Asian stocks dropped sharply in Wednesday trading, after the Dow on Wall Street lost 500 points, closing at its lowest point in five years.
The Federal Reserve announced a new program to help the battered market for short-term business loans - taking its closest step yet to lending directly to businesses.
Wall Street's drubbing continued Tuesday, with a 500-point loss bringing the Dow's two-day slump to nearly 900 points, as the Federal Reserve's plan to loosen credit markets failed to temper investor pessimism.
The dollar sank against most foreign currencies Tuesday, as the still-frozen credit markets led a majority of investors to believe the Federal Reserve will step in with rate cuts, in addition to buying loans crucial to business.
Credit markets eased slightly Tuesday after the Federal Reserve announced plans to help unclog the pipeline by buying up short-term corporate debt that is typically used to cover day-to-day business expenses.
Even in the midst of a severe meltdown on Wall Street, Federal Reserve officials at their September meeting believed the risks from weaker growth and higher inflation were roughly equal.
Oil held its gains in volatile trading Tuesday, bouncing off an 8-month low on weakness in the dollar, but the advance was kept in check by falling stock prices.
After last week's political theater in Washington over the $700 billion bailout bill, the stock market's continuing woes have left many people shaking their heads
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke predicted that the global financial markets crisis is likely to restrain the economy well into next year and signaled that the Fed may be getting ready to cut interest rates.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke spoke Tuesday afternoon about current economic and financial conditions at the annual meeting of the National Association for Business Economics.
The Federal Reserve announced Monday that it will increase by hundreds of billions of dollars the money it makes available to the nation's banks.
The Federal Reserve's unusual move to ease credit for businesses lifted U.S. stocks at Tuesday's open.
The Federal Reserve provided more details Monday about when it will make billions of dollars in short-term loans available to squeezed banks.
The government is weighing a bold plan to buy massive amounts of unsecured short-term debts in a dramatic effort to break through a credit clog that is imperiling the economy.
The dollar continued to rally against European currencies Monday but plummeted more than 4% to hit a 6-month low against the Japanese yen, as the credit crisis spreads around the globe.
The world's financial markets face an uncertain and possibly volatile week as investors await details about how the Treasury will implement the government's financial rescue package - and watch for any further fallout from the credit crisis around the globe.
The Federal Reserve and other countries' central banks announced new steps Monday that makes billions of dollars available to squeezed banks here and abroad to battle a worsening credit crisis that threatens to unhinge the U.S. economy.
The U.S. Federal Reserve Bank announced an expansion of deals with European nations Friday in an effort to stabilize global financial markets.
The Federal Reserve could be prompted to make an emergency interest rate cut in the next few days in an attempt to boost confidence in the battered banking sector.
When John Dykstra got his September credit card bill from Advanta, a small-business card issuer, he was shocked: Dykstra says he has a good credit score and has never missed a payment, but his interest rate had jumped from 7.99% to 26%.
The proposed bailout of the world's financial system isn't really about money, folks. It's about psychology. In fact, you can think of it as the most expensive piece of psychotherapy in the history of the world.
The economy's spring rebound turned out to be slightly less energetic than the government previously thought. And, the road ahead is likely to be rocky as the country gets pounded by the worst financial crisis in decades.
The Federal Reserve expanded deals early Friday morning with two of its counterparts in Europe in order to make an extra $13 billion available to banks there, after reporting increased lending to U.S. banks and Wall Street firms.
The Federal Reserve says banks and investment firms ramped up borrowing from its emergency lending facility over the past week, more proof of the credit stresses plaguing the country.
The Federal Reserve Bank announced a deal with four nations Wednesday meant to help increase dollar liquidity in global financial markets.
The sound of air hissing out of the commodities bubble is music to Ben Bernanke's ears.
The Federal Reserve Bank announced a deal with four nations Wednesday meant to help global financial markets.
The Federal Reserve may have pulled off one "shotgun" marriage earlier this year by partnering up Bear Stearns with JPMorgan Chase.
Stocks slumped Tuesday, as the heated debate in Congress on the proposed $700 billion bank bailout dampened hopes that the government would take faster action to mitigate the credit market crisis.
Many Americans today are asking themselves how the economy got to be in such a bad spot.
Stocks slumped Monday, with the Dow losing 373 points, as investors worried about the specifics of the government's $700 billion bailout plan and rocketing oil prices - which saw its biggest one-day dollar gain ever.
And then there were none. Federal regulators converted Wall Street's remaining stand-alone investment banks - Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley - into bank holding companies Sunday night.
The Federal Reserve said Sunday it had granted a request by the country's last two major investment banks - Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley - to change their status to bank holding companies.
The U.S. financial crisis has pushed Fed chief Ben Bernanke off the front page lately, but he may soon return with a vengeance.
With federal regulators refusing to use tax dollars to support another bailout, the heads of Wall Street's big banks are turning to each other.
The Federal Government is making plans to move well beyond bailouts -- at a cost that could reach $1 trillion
Coming to the rescue of a bedrock of American investing, the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve took three big steps Friday to shore up the $3.3 trillion U.S. money-market fund industry.
The numbers are big. That much is certain.
Wall Street rallied Thursday, finding momentum at the end of a tough session, on a CNBC report that the government is working on a more permanent solution to absorbing bad debt.
Banks and Wall Street firms ramped up borrowing from the Federal Reserve's emergency lending facility over the past week, a fresh sign of the credit stresses plaguing the country.
The Federal Reserve and five other central banks around the globe announced joint efforts early Thursday to try to pump an additional $180 billion into the battered global financial system.
The latest move by the Fed appeared to work - for a few hours at least.
Stocks rallied Thursday morning as investors breathed a sigh of relief that central banks around the world have acted to calm markets shaken by the financial crisis.
Key Republicans on Capitol Hill blasted the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve on Wednesday for orchestrating an $85 billion bailout of insurance giant American International Group, and the White House for not informing them of the plan.
The U.S. Treasury Department will begin selling bonds Wednesday to help the Federal Reserve, which has had to loan out an unprecedented amount of money to businesses because of the credit crisis.
So how did investors in the Treasury and currency markets react Wednesday to Wall Street's continued meltdown?
Mr. Bernanke, while this is without doubt an unprecedented time in the history of Wall Street, please resist the urge from jittery Wall Street types to cut rates again later today.
The Federal Reserve, we are often told, has a dual mandate: to promote stable prices and maximum employment.
In an unprecedented move, the Federal Reserve Board is lending as much as $85 billion to rescue crumbling insurer American International Group, officials announced Tuesday evening.
Many seem taken aback by the depth and severity of the current financial turmoil. I was among several economists who saw it coming and warned about the risks.
Asian stock markets partly recovered Wednesday after the U.S. government announced an $85 billion plan to bail out troubled insurance giant American International Group Inc.
Stocks rallied Tuesday as investors focused on the positive implications for the economy in the Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates steady, and on diminishing fears about AIG's solvency.
The Federal Reserve left its fed funds rate at 2% Tuesday despite increased hopes for a rate cut.
The dollar shifted higher against the Japanese yen but edged lower versus the euro Tuesday, following the announcement by members of the Federal Reserve that they would keep interest rates steady.
Treasurys danced around, then turned lower Tuesday as the Federal Reserve held rates steady and nervousness mounted on Wall Street.
The following statement was posted on the Federal Reserve Web site on September 16, 2008.
Urgently trying to keep cash flowing amid a Wall Street meltdown, the Federal Reserve on Tuesday pumped $50 billion into the nation's financial system to help ease credit stresses.
Urgently trying to keep cash flowing amid a Wall Street meltdown, the Federal Reserve on Tuesday pumped another $70 billion into the nation's financial system to help ease credit stresses
When Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy on Monday, the government essentially sat on the sideline. Six months ago, when Bear Stearns faced a similar fate, the Federal Reserve intervened with the Treasury Department's support.
Wreckage from a massive crisis on Wall Street could prompt the Federal Reserve to do an about face and once again cut a key interest rate this week or possibly later this year, economists said Monday.
Everyone is running around arguing about whom to blame for the Fannie Mae-Freddie Mac disaster. But there's one simple truth that doesn't seem to be part of the national conversation: that the Fannie-Freddie fiasco is due at least in part to the Federal Reserve Board's cutting short-term rates to ridiculously low levels over the years.
Release Date: September 14, 2008 For immediate release
As the outlook for Lehman Brothers' future appeared to dim Sunday, U.S. and foreign banks joined forces to create a plan aimed at inoculating the global financial system against the investment bank's possible failure, a top investment banking official said.
While the Federal Reserve is widely expected to once again hold a key interest rate at 2% when it meets on Tuesday, there is a growing sense that the Fed may have to cut rates by the end of the year.
Your credit card terms may be getting a makeover, for the worse. Thanks to the ailing economy, a tight credit market and banking woes, credit card issuers are increasing fees or slashing risk. Here's what you need to know.
Lehman Brothers has finally announced a path to raising capital. But after Tuesday's 45% plunge in its stock price, it's unclear if Wall Street will let chief executive officer Richard Fuld carry out the plan.
The Federal Reserve has auctioned another $25 billion in loans to squeezed banks to help them overcome credit problems.
The Federal Reserve has auctioned another $25 billion in loans to squeezed banks to help them overcome credit problems.
The nation's unemployment rate hit a five-year high of 6.1% in August as employers slashed 84,000 jobs, proof of the mounting damage of a deeply troubled economy
It's been almost a year since the Federal Reserve issued the first of what turned out to be seven rate-cuts to deal with the credit crisis.
Stocks ended mixed Wednesday in a choppy session, as falling oil prices, a lackluster growth report from the Federal Reserve and weak sales from many automakers kept worries about the economic slowdown in the forefront.
The nation struggled with slow economic growth and still-high prices that are weighing on consumers and businesses alike as the race for the White House kicks into high gear
Watching Alan Greenspan in his new incarnation is a strange experience. Greenspan 1.0 served as Federal Reserve Board chairman for an entire generation, being oracular, talking in what we (and now he) called Fedspeak, rarely saying anything on the record outside of carefully choreographed public appearances.
The Federal Reserve expressed concern about both greater inflation risks and a slowdown in the economy that could extend into next year, according to minutes of its most recent meeting.
A survey of top economists shows that many are growing more concerned about inflation and slightly less worried about mortgage and credit market problems.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Friday the financial crisis that has pounded the country poses a major challenge to policymakers as they try to restore stability
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Friday that the problems in the nation's financial markets persist and still threaten the economy.
The market's up one day and down the next. Oil rises and oil falls. The dollar strengthens and then it weakens.
Two key reports in the past week show that inflation was running high in July. But August is offering relief.
Whether or not the government is actually on the verge of taking over mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, investor fears that a bailout is imminent could turn such a worst-case scenario into reality
With the price of practically everything jumping, you probably wouldn't mind getting a bigger paycheck.
The Federal Reserve has auctioned another $25 billion in loans to the nation's banks and given them more time to pay the money back in an effort to combat a serious credit squeeze
Make no mistake: The worst probably is not over for financial firms. Not by a long shot.
Forget oil and gold. Credit might be the commodity that's in the scarcest supply these days.
As election day draws nearer, the economy is becoming the defining issue for more Americans as they size up the candidates, a poll released Wednesday shows.
Treasury prices fell again Wednesday, as billions of dollars of new government debt was auctioned off in the afternoon.
The Federal Reserve sent a strong signal to the markets on Tuesday that it would not be raising rates anytime soon, and you'd think that would spell disaster for the dollar.
The dollar hit a seven-month high against the yen Wednesday and gained against the euro after the Federal Reserve eased some concerns about the U.S. economy.
For a second straight meeting, the Federal Reserve has decided to remain on the sidelines and leave interest rates alone. In the opinion of many economists, that stance may prevail not only for the rest of this year but well into 2009
Stocks surged to one of the year's biggest gains Tuesday, as oil prices fell sharply and investors appeared to take solace in the Federal Reserve's assessment of the nation's economy.
Treasury prices dipped on Tuesday after the Federal Reserve announced its decision to hold the key federal funds rate steady at 2%, a move that most traders were expecting.
The dollar remained at its highest level in nearly seven weeks against the 15-country euro Tuesday after the Federal Reserve's decision to hold a key interest rate at 2%, although the U.S. currency edged off its highs.
The Federal Reserve left a key short-term interest rate unchanged Tuesday and cited both the risk of a slowing economy and inflation pressures, a sign that the central bank may keep rates steady for the next few months.
Oil prices fell to near $119 a barrel Tuesday - the lowest settle price in more than three months - after the Federal Reserve held its key interest rate at 2%.
The following statement was posted on the Federal Reserve Web site on August 5, 2008.
An already rallying Wall Street extended its advance Tuesday after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged and assuaged some of the market's fears about the economy
The Federal Reserve, caught between mounting job losses and rising inflation, is likely to sit tight and hope that the interest rate cuts it has already provided will be enough to heal a sick economy
Elizabeth "Betsy" Duke, the newest addition to the Federal Reserve's chief policymaking group, is a lifelong commercial banker who many Fed watchers hope can balance out a board riven by inflation pressures, a weakened Wall Street, and a slowing economy.
The dollar fell against the euro Monday as investors digested news of a large drop in profits at British bank HSBC.
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