Assignment #1 – NYT Article

Fed Chairman Says American Economy Is Poised to Grow

Ben S. Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, offered his most hopeful assessment in more than a year on Friday, asserting that “the prospects for a return to growth in the near term appear good.”

In a much-awaited speech here to central bankers and economists from around the world, Mr. Bernanke went beyond the Fed’s most recent assessment that the nation’s economy was “leveling out” and that the recession was ending.

Noting that short-term lending markets are functioning “more normally,” that corporate bond issuance is strong and that other “previously moribund” securitization markets are reviving, Mr. Bernanke said that both the United States and other major countries were poised for growth.

A surprising increase in sales of previously owned homes in July bolstered that view. A brokers’ group reported on Friday that existing home sales surged 7.2 percent last month as first-time buyers took advantage of an $8,000 tax credit, and other buyers were enticed by falling prices and low mortgage rates.