Financial Crises Update 04-19-09

 - President Obama says US economy remains under strain.
Paul Volcker, Obama's economic adviser, says U.S. recovery will
be a "long slog" but rate of decline "is going to slow"

 - China's economy bottoming out - government researcher

 - Worst of British recession is over, to return to modest
growth in second half of 2010 - Confederation of British
Industry

 - ECB Trichet says bank has further room for benchmark rate
cut but cut is likely to be a measured 25 basis points - Nikkei

 - Fed will not allow unorthodox policies to lead to
inflation surge, but may need to do more to ease credit, Fed's
No. 2 says

 - Euro zone econ should start recovering in 2010 after
tough 2009, Trichet

 - U.S. housing sales near a bottom, a third of sales now of
foreclosed properties, Freddie Mac chief economist says

                 MARKETS

 - U.S. stocks rise, capping S&P 500's longest weekly
winning streak since 2007. Dow up 0.1 pct. Nikkei .N225 falls
1 pct as yen weighs

 - Euro strikes one-month low against dollar due to ECB
uncertainty

 - Oil falls $1 towards $49, weighed down by rising dollar
and growing investor caution on global economy, gold little
changed

                 QUOTES

  "The situation in financial markets and the economy would
have  been far worse if the Federal Reserve hadn't taken the
actions we did." - Donald Kohn, vice chairman of the Federal
Reserve.

 "We are experiencing a period which is difficult and the
year 2009 is obviously difficult for all economies in the world
without any exception, but it is also true that we have all
good reasons to consider that the recovery will take place in
the course of 2010." - European Central Bank President
Jean-Claude Trichet.

 "None of us has seen a decline in economic activity at the
rate of speed seen late last year." - Paul Volcker, senior
economic adviser to President Barack Obama.

 "While consumers believe the economy may have hit bottom,
most consumers believe that when the rebound starts the economy
will gain ground very slowly." - Richard Curtin, director of
the Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers.

                  DIARY

            (all times GMT)

 Monday, April 20

 0600 - Japan Finmin Yosano, BOJ governor Shirakawa speak at
the annual meeting of Japanese trust banks.

 1230 - Chicago Fed National Activity Index for March

 1400 - Chicago Fed president evans welcomes Fed chairman
Bernanke

 1400 - U.S. leading indicators for March

 Newark, Delaware - Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Donald
Kohn discusses "the Economic Outlook" at the University of
Delaware's annual Hutchinson Lecture in macroeconomics at 2330.

 (Compiled by World Desk, Singapore, +65 6870 3815)