Bernanke Quotes & Sayings

Bernanke has cultivated this idea that he is a brilliant scholar of The Great Depression, but that's not true at all. — David Stockman

Over the years, the U.S. economy has shown a remarkable ability to absorb shocks of all kinds, to recover, and to continue to grow. Flexible and efficient markets for labor and capital, an entrepreneurial tradition, and a general willingness to tolerate and even embrace technological and economic change all contribute to this resiliency. — Ben Bernanke

How much would you pay to avoid a second Depression? — Ben Bernanke

Achieving price stability is not only important in itself, it is also central to attaining the Federal Reserve's other mandate objectives of maximum sustainable employment and moderate long-term interest rates. — Ben Bernanke

I think one of the lessons of the Depression - and this is something that Franklin Roosevelt demonstrated - was that when orthodoxy fails, then you need to try new things. And he was very willing to try unorthodox approaches when the orthodox approach had shown that it was not adequate. — Ben Bernanke

I am very proud of my nerd-dom. — Ben Bernanke

The banks have accounts with the Fed, much the same way that you have an account in a commercial bank. — Ben Bernanke

I invest in anything that Bernanke can't destroy including Gold, canned beans, bottled water and flashlight batteries ... — David Stockman

Sector-specific price declines, uncomfortable as they may be for producers in that sector, are generally not a problem for the economy as a whole and do not constitute deflation. — Ben Bernanke

The people who best use their advantages, or overcome adversity, and work honestly are those most worthy of admiration. — Ben Bernanke

If we acted, nobody would thank us. But if we did not act, who would? Making politically unpopular decisions for the long-run benefit of the country is the reason the Fed exists as a politically independent central bank. It was created for precisely this purpose: to do what must be done - what others cannot or will not do. — Ben S. Bernanke

Developments in financial markets can have broad economic effects felt by many outside the markets. — Ben Bernanke

After a long period in which the desired direction for inflation was always downward, the industrialized world's central banks must today try to avoid major changes in the inflation rate in either direction. — Ben Bernanke

The role of liquidity in systemic events provides yet another reason why, in the future, a more system wide or macroprudential approach to regulation is needed. — Ben Bernanke

Economics is a highly sophisticated field of thought that is superb at explaining to policymakers precisely why the choices they made in the past were wrong. About the future, not so much. — Ben Bernanke

I come from Main Street, from a small town that's really depressed. — Ben Bernanke

The GSEs are adequately capitalized. They are in no danger of failing. — Ben Bernanke

Economic engineering is about the design and analysis of frameworks for achieving specific economic objectives. — Ben Bernanke

In the tradition of national income accounting, economic policymakers have typically focused on variables such as income, wealth, and consumption. — Ben Bernanke

Economics is a very difficult subject. I've compared it to trying to learn how to repair a car when the engine is running. — Ben Bernanke

Many foreclosed homes are neglected or abandoned, as legal proceedings or other factors delay their resale. Deteriorating or vacant properties can, in turn, directly affect the quality of life in a neighborhood, for example, by leading to increases in vandalism or crime. — Ben Bernanke

To the extent that bank panics interfere with normal flows of credit, they may affect the performance of the real economy. — Ben Bernanke

The best approach here if at all possible is to use supervisory and regulatory methods to restrain undue risk-taking and to make sure the system is resilient in case an asset price bubble bursts in the future. — Ben Bernanke

We should see better and more direct measurements of economic well being. — Ben Bernanke

Only a strong economy can create higher asset values and sustainably good returns for savers. — Ben Bernanke

The Federal Reserve, like other central banks, wields powerful tools; democratic accountability requires that the public be able to see how and for what purposes those tools are being used. — Ben Bernanke

Although low inflation is generally good, inflation that is too low can pose risks to the economy - especially when the economy is struggling. — Ben Bernanke

In any given month, a large number of workers are being hired or are leaving their current jobs, illustrating the dynamism of the U.S. labor market. — Ben Bernanke

It was easy for the Democrats to attack the wealthy fat cats of Wall Street, the elite, and the privileged people - to portray them as a profiteer of the system, which to some extent, they are. Not because they wanted to, but because Mr. Bernanke enabled them to be profiteers. — Marc Faber

Education - lifelong education for everyone - from toddlers to workers well advanced in their careers - is indeed an excellent investment for individuals and society as a whole. — Ben Bernanke

When the economic well-being of their nation demanded a strong and creative response, my colleagues at the Federal Reserve ... mustered the moral courage to do what was necessary. — Ben Bernanke

The Depression was an incredibly dramatic episode - an era of stock-market crashes, breadlines, bank runs and wild currency speculation, with the storm clouds of war gathering ominously in the background ... For my money, few periods are so replete with human interest. — Ben Bernanke

I don't know why there aren't more Depression buffs. — Ben Bernanke

Rents should begin to decelerate as the demand for owner-occupied housing stabilizes and the supply of rental units increases. — Ben Bernanke

Interest rates are used to achieve overall economic stability. — Ben Bernanke

The Fed needs an approach that consolidates the gains of the Greenspan years and ensures that those successful policies will continue - even if future Fed chairmen are less skillful or less committed to price stability than Mr. Greenspan has been. — Ben Bernanke

You want to put the fire out first and then worry about the fire code. — Ben Bernanke

The more guidance a central bank can provide the public about how policy is likely to evolve the greater the chance that market participants will make appropriate inferences. — Ben Bernanke

The stress on the financial system in the fall of 2007 was significant, but not so significant as to threaten the overall stability of the U.S. economy, although it did lead to the beginning of a recession at the end of 2007. — Ben Bernanke

I don't think there are any students who should not be exposed to a basic financial literacy course. — Ben Bernanke

There will not be an automatic increase in interest rate when unemployment hits 6.5%. — Ben Bernanke

The Federal Reserve's job is to do the right thing, to take the long-run interest of the economy to heart, and that sometimes means being unpopular. But we have to do the right thing. — Ben Bernanke

The one thing people don't appreciate, I think, is that central banking is not a new development. It's been around for a very long time. — Ben Bernanke

Stronger regulation and supervision aimed at problems with underwriting practices and lenders' risk management would have been a more effective and surgical approach to constraining the housing bubble than a general increase in interest rates. — Ben Bernanke

At the most basic level, a central bank must be clear and open about its actions and operations, particularly when they involve the deployment of public funds. — Ben Bernanke

Banks need to continue to lend to creditworthy borrowers to earn a profit and remain strong. — Ben Bernanke

If the fiscal cliff occurs, I don't think the Federal Reserve has the tools to offset that event. — Ben Bernanke

Under current law, on January 1st, 2013, there is going to be a massive fiscal cliff of large spending cuts and tax increases. — Ben Bernanke

Following an extended boom in housing, the demand for homes began to weaken in mid-2005. By the middle of 2006, sales of both new and existing homes had fallen about 15 percent below their peak levels. Homebuilders responded to the fall in demand by sharply curtailing construction. — Ben Bernanke

Bernanke and company are trying to reflate the economy with almost stated objective of inflation at 2 percent and higher in order to provide some type of safety margin for a future recession. That's where they want to go. — Bill Gross

The tax code is very inefficient. Both the personal tax code and the corporate tax code. By closing loopholes and lowering rates, you could increase the efficiency of the tax code and create more incentives for people to invest. — Ben Bernanke

I've never been on Wall Street. And I care about Wall Street for one reason and one reason only because what happens on Wall Street matters to Main Street. — Ben Bernanke

Long-term unemployment is particularly costly to those directly affected, of course. But in addition, because of its negative effects on workers' skills and attachment to the labor force, long-term unemployment may ultimately reduce the productive capacity of our economy. — Ben Bernanke

The decline in home equity makes it more difficult for struggling homeowners to refinance and reduces the financial incentive of stressed borrowers to remain in their homes. — Ben Bernanke

The American people are among the most productive in the world. We have the best technologies. We have great universities. We have entrepreneurs. — Ben Bernanke

In a mature economy like India's, which is becoming modern and a financially-oriented economy, an independent central bank, responsible central bank, is really central to success. — Ben Bernanke

The best solution to income inequality is providing a high-quality education for everybody. In our highly technological, globalized economy, people without education will not be able to improve their economic situation. — Ben Bernanke

Certainly, 9 percent unemployment and very slow growth is not a good situation. — Ben Bernanke

Every effort needs to be made to try and offset the costs of Katrina and Rita by reductions in other government programs, especially those that are wasteful, duplicative and ineffective. — Ben Bernanke

Of course, economic forecasts must be revised when new information arrives and are thus necessarily provisional. — Ben Bernanke

Honest error in the face of complex and possibly intractable problems is a far more important source of bad results than are bad motives. — Ben Bernanke

To minimize market uncertainty and achieve the maximum effect of its policies, the Federal Reserve is committed to providing the public as much information as possible about the uses of its balance sheet, plans regarding future uses of its balance sheet, and the criteria on which the relevant decisions are based. — Ben Bernanke

The crisis and recession have led to very low interest rates, it is true, but these events have also destroyed jobs, hamstrung economic growth and led to sharp declines in the values of many homes and businesses. — Ben Bernanke

I don't think that Chinese ownership of U.S. assets is so large as to put our country at risk economically. — Ben Bernanke

Deflation is defined as a general decline in prices, with emphasis on the word 'general.' — Ben Bernanke

There are a number of institutions globally where the Federal Reserve typically leads the U.S. effort to work with financial regulators from other countries, and we try to, to the extent possible, establish international standards for how - the amount of capital a bank should hold, for example, or how much. — Ben Bernanke

History has demonstrated time and again the inherent resilience and recuperative powers of the American economy. — Ben Bernanke

As an educator myself, I understand the profound effect that good teachers and a quality education have on the lives of our young people. — Ben Bernanke

It is not the responsibility of the Federal Bank - nor would it be appropriate - to protect lenders and investors from the consequences of their decisions — Ben Bernanke

The downturn following the collapse of Japan's so-called bubble economy of the 1980s was not as severe as the Great Depression. — Ben Bernanke

If Australia finds it has a strong Australian dollar, and it has higher unemployment, then it would have to respond, and that would either be by increasing domestic demand or by weakening its own currency. — Ben Bernanke

The economist John Maynard Keynes said that in the long run, we are all dead. If he were around today he might say that, in the long run, we are all on Social Security and Medicare. — Ben Bernanke

Evolving technologies that allow economists to gather new types of data and to manipulate millions of data points are just one factor among several that are likely to transform the field in coming years. — Ben Bernanke

Smart financial planning - such as budgeting, saving for emergencies, and preparing for retirement - can help households enjoy better lives while weathering financial shocks. Financial education can play a key role in getting to these outcomes. — Ben Bernanke

To avoid large and unsustainable budget deficits, the nation will ultimately have to choose among higher taxes, modifications to entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare, less spending on everything else from education to defense, or some combination of the above. — Ben Bernanke

The world has a great deal more to offer than money. — Ben Bernanke

To achieve a more balanced international system over time, countries with excessive and unsustainable trade surpluses will need to allow their exchange rates to better reflect market fundamentals. — Ben Bernanke

The Fed's independence is critical. — Ben Bernanke

I think most of us would agree that people who have, say, little formal schooling but labor honestly and diligently to help feed, clothe, and educate their families are deserving of greater respect - and help, if necessary - than many people who are superficially more successful. — Ben Bernanke

The public in many countries is understandably concerned by the commitment of substantial government resources to aid the financial industry when other industries receive little or no assistance. This disparate treatment, unappealing as it is, appears unavoidable. — Ben Bernanke

The failure of Lehman Brothers demonstrated that liquidity provision by the Federal Reserve would not be sufficient to stop the crisis; substantial fiscal resources were necessary. — Ben Bernanke

A meritocracy is a system in which the people who are the luckiest in their health and genetic endowment; luckiest in terms of family support, encouragement and, probably, income; luckiest in their educational and career opportunities; and luckiest in so many other ways difficult to enumerate - these are the folks who reap the largest rewards. — Ben Bernanke

If you are not happy with yourself, even the loftiest achievements won't bring you much satisfaction. — Ben Bernanke

I think that having good data, good statistics-and the United States generally has better macroeconomic statistics than most countries-and having good economists to interpret those data and present the policy alternatives, has a substantially beneficial effect on policymaking in the United States. — Ben Bernanke

We've never had a decline in house prices on a nationwide basis. So, what I think what is more likely is that house prices will slow, maybe stabilize, might slow consumption spending a bit. I don't think it's going to drive the economy too far from its full employment path, though. — Ben Bernanke

Low and stable inflation in many countries is an important accomplishment that will continue to bring significant benefits. — Ben Bernanke

Income inequality is troubling because, among other things, it means that many people in our society don't have the opportunities to advance themselves. — Ben Bernanke

If I am confirmed, I am confident that my colleagues on the Federal Open Market Committee and I will maintain the focus on long-term price stability as monetary policy's greatest contribution to general economic prosperity and maximum employment. — Ben Bernanke

The movement toward a holistic approach to community development has been long in the making, but the housing crisis has motivated further progress. — Ben Bernanke

Actually, I'm a Republican. — Ben Bernanke

I am confident that we will meet whatever challenges the future may bring. — Ben Bernanke

If you take a candy bar in the short run, it gives you a burst of energy, but after a while, it just makes you fat. — Ben Bernanke

Preventing liquidation of an unbalanced market will leave you in tears. — Ben Bernanke

If two people always agree, one of them is redundant. — Ben Bernanke

Indeed, in general, healthy investment returns cannot be sustained in a weak economy, and of course it is difficult to save for retirement or other goals without the income from a job. — Ben Bernanke

To be sure, the provision of liquidity alone can by no means solve the problems of credit risk and credit losses; but it can reduce liquidity premiums, help restore the confidence of investors, and thus promote stability. — Ben Bernanke

If bankers become overly conservative in response to past lending mistakes - or if examiners force such behavior - it will hurt bankers' own long-term interests and the economy in general. — Ben Bernanke

The Mexican debt crisis, Latin American debt crisis, the crises of the 1990s, the Wall Street stock market crash, and other events should have reminded us, and did remind us, that financial instability remains a concern, remains a problem. — Ben Bernanke

The economic repercussions of a stock market crash depend less on the severity of the crash itself than on the response of economic policymakers, particularly central bankers. — Ben Bernanke

It takes about two and a half percent growth just to keep unemployment stable. — Ben Bernanke