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Bernanke: Labor Market ’Still Far From Normal’

01 March 2012 10:17 (UTC +04:00)

Baku - APA-Economics. The uneven U.S. economic recovery will have to pick up in order to quickly bring down an unacceptably high jobless rate, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Wednesday.

"The job market is far from normal," he said in comments prepared for delivery to the House of Representatives Financial Services committee.

Bernanke’s remarks suggested another round of Fed bond buying to stimulate growth is not off the table as policymakers assess whether job market gains will persist.

The drop in the unemployment rate, which fell to 8.3 percent in January, is more rapid than would be expected given the economy’s sluggish rate of growth, Bernanke said.

"Continued improvement in the job market is likely to require stronger growth in final demand and production," he said.

Sustaining a highly accommodative monetary policy stance is consistent with the Fed’s goals of achieving full employment with low and steady inflation, he said. The Fed believes rates near zero will be appropriate through at least late 2014, he added.