Ben Bernanke

The US Federal Reserve voted to hold interest rates at record lows as it admitted Europe's debt problems could slow American economic growth.

Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke believes the US recovery remains on track and world's largest economy should avoid a double-dip recession.

Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke has once again allayed fears of a double-dip recession saying the US is staging a "moderate economic recovery".

The FTSE 100 opened lower, down 39.78 points or 0.76% to 5220 over worries about global growth following announcements in China and the US.

While central banks and governments have started to think about how they might navigate a return to normality, there is little evidence that an exit is imminent