RECESSION MAY END IN 2009: US CHIEF

In carefully hedged remarks in a television interview, Mr Bernanke seemed to express a bit more optimism that the recession can be quickly beaten than he has in the past.

But he stressed the prospects of the recession ending this year and a recovery taking root next year hinge on a difficult task - getting banks to lend more freely again and getting the financial markets to operate normally.

"We've seen some progress in the financial markets, absolutely," Mr Bernanke said. "But until we get that stabilised and working normally, we're not going to see recovery.

"But we do have a plan. We're working on it. I do think that we will get it stabilised, and we'll see the recession coming to an end probably this year."

Even if the recession, which began in December 2007, ends this year, the unemployment rate will keep climbing past the current quarter-century high of 8.1%, Mr Bernanke said.

A growing number of economists think the jobless rate will hit 10% by the end of this year.

Asked about the biggest potential dangers now, Mr Bernanke suggested a lack of "political will" to solve the financial crisis.

He said, though, that the United States has averted the risk of plunging into a depression, saying: "I think we've gotten past that."