Bernanke to Cut Interest Rates

With Wall Street tearing out its hair at another day of staggering Dow losses (500 points!) and mind-boggling news alerts—retirement accounts have lost $2 trillion, consumer borrowing has fallen for the first time in ten years, and that's just the national news—the Fed chairman Ben Bernanke says he is considering an interest rate cut. "Continued efforts to stabilize the financial markets are essential," he said Tuesday to the National Association for Business Economics. Market instability and asset price declines "can take a heavy toll on the broader economy if left unchecked." After a five-month pause, the Federal Open Market Committee could lower the fed-funds rate at its October 28-29 meeting, and borrowing costs could be cut before then.