The Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke, said he believes the economy will continue to grow this year despite high unemployment rates, weak job growth and an “exceptionally weak housing sector”.

In the Fed's Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to Congress, Bernanke highlighted the positive direction the economy has taken citing as evidence the real GDP's return to where it was before the financial crisis occurred.

In today’s hearing conducted by the Senate Banking Committee, the focus seemed to be on the Fed’s decision to buy securities issued by the Department of Treasury and the effectiveness of that ...