By Ann Saphir

(Reuters) – Slowing the Federal Reserve’s current pace of monthly asset purchases could paradoxically help the U.S. housing market, a top Fed official said on Thursday.

“The housing market is getting to be quite strong. It’s quite possible, in my view – and this is my personal opinion – that a little tapering there would actually make people realize that we’ve bottomed out on the interest rate cycle,” Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher told Fox Business News. “I think you’d actually see more activity than you are currently seeing.”

March 7 (Reuters) – Slowing the Federal Reserve’s current
pace of monthly asset purchases could paradoxically help the
U.S. housing market, a top Fed official said on Thursday.

“The housing market is getting to be quite strong. It’s
quite possible, in my view – and this is my personal opinion -
that a little tapering there would actually make people realize
that we’ve bottomed out on the interest rate cycle,” Dallas Fed
President Richard Fisher told Fox Business News. “I think you’d
actually see more activity than you are currently seeing.”

March 6 (Reuters) – CME Group Inc would be open to
making a large acquisition should the right target emerge, a top
executive said on Wednesday in the latest sign that the company
may reverse its longstanding public indifference to mergers and
acquisitions.

“We have all the right pieces in place we feel … We don’t
feel compelled to go out and do any particular M&A deal,” CME
Chief Financial Officer James Parisi said. But, he added: “If a
great opportunity were to arise where we can create shareholder
value through some type of M&A opportunity, we will certainty
take a look at it.”