Treasury's Paulson says U.S. economy resilient

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on Sunday repeated comments that a strong dollar was in the U.S. interest and expressed confidence that financial markets would recover from their current turmoil.

In an interview with "Fox News Sunday" Paulson said U.S. markets were "resilient" and that he felt the $152 billion economic stimulus plan would help lift the economy.

Paulson said the Bush administration continued to believe that "long-term economic strength is going to be reflected in the dollar."

Paulson also said the Federal Reserve made the right decision on Friday to come to the rescue of Bear Stearns,

BSC.N, the fifth largest investment bank. Paulson said it was important to minimize market disruptions and enhance confidence in the U.S. economy.

"I've got great confidence in our financial institutions," Paulson said. "Our markets are resilient."

He added that he had confidence U.S economy would work it way through the current crises that began with a sharp downturn in the U.S. housing market leading to a full-blown credit crisis. (Reporting by Donna Smith; Editing by Jackie Frank)