Greenspan Says 'Expansion,' and Rate-Hike Talk Jumps

Alan Greenspan gave Senate testimony Thursday that deviated only slightly from what he told the House last week. But for some observers those changes made all the difference.

Just as he did a week ago, the chairman emphasized the balance between forces stoking the economy and those holding it back. This time around, however, Greenspan suggested the healing process is much further along. And that is making bond market investors think the Fed is that much more likely to raise interest rates soon.

Most important, Greenspan led with a subtle, but to many minds monumental, acknowledgment that growth has resumed. "The recent evidence increasingly suggests that an economic expansion is already well under way," the Fed chief said in his opening remarks. ...