Fed Lays Groundwork to Increase Rates, If Needed: John M. Berry Federal Reserve officials, growing more concerned about inflation, shifted their policy stance yesterday in the direction of raising interest rates later this year.

It's Spend and Forget Taxes, Not Tax and Spend: John M. Berry U.S. politicians are about to create yet another federal entitlement program they don't pay for.

Oil Price Realities May Soften Fed Rate Moves: John M. Berry The Federal Reserve, when considering how much to raise interest rates to keep inflation in check, might call upon the law of gravity: nothing, even the price of oil, goes up forever.

Fed Not in It to Back a `Strong Dollar' Policy: John M. Berry Let's get one thing straight: The Federal Reserve isn't going to raise interest rates to back a ``strong dollar'' policy.

Profit Gain Signals Companies Surviving Storm: John M. Berry Profits of U.S. corporations, after falling in the second half of 2007, are on the rise again, a signal that companies are adjusting to the slow-growth economy.

Fed's Tug-of-War of Pessimists, Optimists: John Berry (Correct) Federal Reserve officials are like the rest of us: Some are gloomy about the economy's prospects this year while others expect a rebound in the second half that will lead to 3 percent growth in 2009.

OPEC Should Get Smart and Start Pumping More Oil: John M. Berry In the summer of 1974, Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani, concerned that world oil prices had risen too far too fast, sought to bring them down by auctioning Saudi oil for whatever it might bring. His worry was that high oil prices -- it had quadrupled to $12 a barrel in less than a year -- would cause oil-importing nations to make major energy-saving investments and reduce long-term demand.

Fed Adds Liquidity and Economy Avoids Recession: John M. Berry The Federal Reserve is supplying the financial system with more than $150 billion in cash, a liquidity cushion that has helped keep enough credit flowing to ensure the economy's growth.

Ethanol Fantasy Fuels a Food-Price Nightmare: John M. Berry Last year, U.S. farmers planted the most land with corn in any year since World War II, and it wasn't enough. Demand for corn rose faster than the size of the crop, boosting the price to about $6 a bushel from $4.

Fed Has Bought Enough Anti-Recession Insurance: John M. Berry With the U.S. economy growing, financial markets recovering and the government sending out tax rebate checks, the reduction in the Federal Reserve's target for the overnight lending rate ought to be the last for now.