Paulson: Working quickly for subprime relief

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Treasury Department is working swiftly to develop a plan that would see the mortgage industry freeze interest rates for subprime borrowers who would otherwise face foreclosure, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said on Friday.

"We're moving as fast as we can move," Paulson said in an interview with ABC's World News Tonight with Charles Gibson.

Paulson said the effort to help homeowners was aimed at those borrowers who could make their current payments but would struggle if their mortgage interest rate were to spike.

"We're focused on those in the center -- the middle group -- that are going to have a problem meeting their payment," he said.

(Reporting by Patrick Rucker; Editing by Leslie Adler)