Bernanke to Scrutinize QE Costs as Fed Assets Near Record

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke indicated he will closely scrutinize the potential costs of asset purchases aimed at spurring economic growth as the Fed’s balance sheet approaches $3 trillion.

“So far, we think we are getting some effect, it is kind of early,” Bernanke said today at the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy in Ann Arbor. “We are going to continue to assess how effective” the program is “because it is possible that as you move through time and the situation changes that the impact of these tools could vary.”