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Financial bailout cost pegged at $50 billion

06 October 2010 14:56 (UTC +04:00)

Baku - APA-Economics. The U.S. government’s $700 billion bailout of the financial sector will cost about $50 billion, the Treasury Department said Tuesday, Washington Post reported.

The price tag was included in a report on the two-year program and is lower than earlier projections - including a $66 billion estimate this summer by the Congressional Budget Office.

Treasury notes in the report that the bailout, known as the Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP, helped stabilize the financial system and prevent a deeper crisis. It says independent economists credit the program with preventing economic collapse.

Treasury’s powers under the law expired on Sunday. The report reviews its actions over two years to rescue failing banks, automakers and others. The law passed in October 2008 with support from lawmakers in both parties and the Bush administration.

"I hope this report will allow the American people and their representatives in Congress to reassess the initiative and its impact," Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner wrote in a cover letter to lawmakers.