U.S. stocks erase gains on Bernanke talk
Fed chairman says central bank can’t offset fiscal cliff’s full impact
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks finished little changed Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned the Fed does not have the ability to shield the economy from the fiscal cliff.

Stocks had jumped to session highs after the central bank said it would add further stimulus, only to reverse into negative turf as Bernanke address a news conference, taking questions that largely focused on the automatic and steep spending cuts and tax increases that start in January should politicians fail to reach a budget deal.
“We cannot offset the full impact of the fiscal cliff — it’s just too big,” said Bernanke, who also said he believed a deal to avert the cliff would be reached.

Bernanke’s comments came after the U.S. central bank said it would add $45 billion in Treasury-note purchases to its $40 billion-a-month purchases of mortgage-backed bonds, and would keep official rates near zero so long as the jobless rate remains above 6.5% and inflation is not forecast to rise above 2.5%.
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-ri...2-10103327