Free Republic

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's dour assessment of the U.S. recovery hit stocks on Wednesday, as his comment that the economy faced "unusually uncertain" prospects rattled investors. Stocks tumbled after Bernanke acknowledged the labor market's continued weakness while offering few specific options to stimulate lending and investment. "The market sold off because unfortunately there is no remedy provided in Bernanke's commentary to the rising threat of deflation, the excess capacity in the economy and the malfunctioning of the credit system," said Joe Battipaglia, market strategist at Stifel Nicolaus in Yardley, Pennsylvania. "We are now giving up...

Washington (CNNMoney.com) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned Congress Wednesday that the economic outlook remains "unusually uncertain." In his prepared testimony for the Fed's semi-annual report to Congress, Bernanke offered the most extensive look yet at the Fed's plans for pulling money out of the system and raising short term rates, as the economy improves. But his outlook did not call for a quick recovery from the Great Recession.