Bernanke: Monetary stimulus still possible; inflation target set at 2%

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Bernanke: Monetary stimulus still possible; inflation target set at 2%

FITITOL--> FXstreet.com (San Francisco) - In the press conference following Wednesday’s FOMC decision, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has said that the central bank has been bold and aggressive and is still prepared to do more in the way of policy stimulus, reminding markets that QE3 is still a possibility.

The Fed revealed that now seven of its members expect the first rate increase in 2014, up from five who held that view in January. Also, the Fed now expects unemployment rate to end the year in the 7.8-8% range, down from 8.2-8.5% in January. Worthy of note, the FOMC statement also gave a bit more attention to inflation, acknowledging that it has been somewhat higher than expected. But Bernanke says that inflation is not expected to surge far beyond the central bank’s 2% target â€" he reiterates the point that the mentioned 2% is not a “ceiling”, but, indeed, a “tar get”.