Fed Auctions Total $510 Billion

Fed Auctions $75b
Working to relieve stressed credit markets, the Federal Reserve has auctioned another $75 billion in loans to squeezed banks, bringing the total to $510 billion since December. The central bank on Tuesday announced the results of its most recent auction — the 12th — since the program to help banks overcome credit problems started in December. It's part of an ongoing effort by the Fed to help ease the credit crunch, which erupted last August and hit a crisis point in March with the near collapse and forced sale of Bear Stearns, the nation's fifth-largest investment house, to JP Morgan Chase & Co. Housing, credit and financial problems have weighed heavily on the economy, sharply slowing its growth.