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Bernanke urges action to heal U.S. housing markets

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U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testifies before a Senate Budget Committee hearing on the outlook for the U.S. Monetary and Fiscal Policy on Capitol Hill in Washington, February 7, 2012. REUTERS/Jason Reed

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testifies before a Senate Budget Committee hearing on the outlook for the U.S. Monetary and Fiscal Policy on Capitol Hill in Washington, February 7, 2012.

Credit: Reuters/Jason Reed

WASHINGTON | Fri Feb 10, 2012 12:57pm EST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The weak economic recovery has made it harder for banks to make money from loans but the financial conditions of smaller institutions appears to be solidifying, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Thursday.

"Despite some recent signs of improvement, the recovery has been frustratingly slow, constraining opportunities for profitable lending," Bernanke told a banking conference.

Despite high ratios of nonperforming assets, asset quality appears to be stabilizing and provisions for loan losses at community banks appear to be decreasing, Bernanke said. Capital ratios seem to be improving, he added.

The Fed chairman did not extensively discuss the outlook for the economy or monetary policy in his speech.

(Reporting By Mark Felsenthal; Editing by James Dalgleish)
Housing Market
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Comments (2)
owen66 wrote:
maybe we could let the banks (the ones that made the poor lending decisions) take the hit and then let the home-buying market decide the actual value of the houses. (might also help if you set realistic interest rates too, but baby steps)

Feb 10, 2012 2:32pm EST  --  Report as abuse
Unchained wrote:
Wait, let me guess his solution. Hmmm, is it the same answer he has had to every question in the last 40 years, “Print More Money!” It’s just paper, and the fact that my kids and grandkids will be paying for it their whole lives doesn’t seem to bother Mr. Bernanke the slightest. That makes Mr. Bernanke a sociopathic criminal who belongs in jail.

Feb 10, 2012 2:33pm EST  --  Report as abuse
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