188.- Nuevamente el comité de política monetaria de la Reserva Federal (FOMC) ha decidido acudir al rescate en varios frentes:

adquisición de deuda pública del Tesoro por valor de 300 mil millones de $, 750 mil millones destinados a la compra de títulos hipotecarios (compras que acumularán la cifra de 1,25 billones de $) y 100 mil millones más para la compra de deuda de las inmobiliarias Freddie Mac y Fannie Mae que alcanzarán los 200 mil millones hasta final de año.

Asimismo Bernanke anunció que los tipos de interés se mantendrían invariables, teniendo en cuenta que ya están entre el 0 % y el 0,25 %, poco margen queda para actuar en este epígrafe.

Por último, la FED anunció un nuevo paquete de medidas para facilitar el acceso del crédito a las familias y las pymes ampliando el tipo de garantía colateral necesaria para obtener dichas ayudas.

No cabe duda que el empeoramiento general de la economía estadounidense con unos niveles de destrucción de empleo no vistos desde hace más de 25 años, las exportaciones en claro descenso y una contracción del PIB también sin precedentes han propiciado este nuevo "plan" Bernanke.

Release Date: March 18, 2009

For immediate release

Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in January indicates that the economy continues to contract. Job losses, declining equity and housing wealth, and tight credit conditions have weighed on consumer sentiment and spending. Weaker sales prospects and difficulties in obtaining credit have led businesses to cut back on inventories and fixed investment. U.S. exports have slumped as a number of major trading partners have also fallen into recession. Although the near-term economic outlook is weak, the Committee anticipates that policy actions to stabilize financial markets and institutions, together with fiscal and monetary stimulus, will contribute to a gradual resumption of sustainable economic growth.

In light of increasing economic slack here and abroad, the Committee expects that inflation will remain subdued. Moreover, the Committee sees some risk that inflation could persist for a time below rates that best foster economic growth and price stability in the longer term.

In these circumstances, the Federal Reserve will employ all available tools to promote economic recovery and to preserve price stability. The Committee will maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 1/4 percent and anticipates that economic conditions are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels of the federal funds rate for an extended period. To provide greater support to mortgage lending and housing markets, the Committee decided today to increase the size of the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet further by purchasing up to an additional $750 billion of agency mortgage-backed securities, bringing its total purchases of these securities to up to $1.25 trillion this year, and to increase its purchases of agency debt this year by up to $100 billion to a total of up to $200 billion. Moreover, to help improve conditions in private credit markets, the Committee decided to purchase up to $300 billion of longer-term Treasury securities over the next six months. The Federal Reserve has launched the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility to facilitate the extension of credit to households and small businesses and anticipates that the range of eligible collateral for this facility is likely to be expanded to include other financial assets. The Committee will continue to carefully monitor the size and composition of the Federal Reserve's balance sheet in light of evolving financial and economic developments.

Voting for the FOMC monetary policy action were: Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman; William C. Dudley, Vice Chairman; Elizabeth A. Duke; Charles L. Evans; Donald L. Kohn; Jeffrey M. Lacker; Dennis P. Lockhart; Daniel K. Tarullo; Kevin M. Warsh; and Janet L. Yellen.