US puts Treasury`s weight behind Fannie, Freddie

Paulson, speaking yesterday on the steps of the Treasury facing the White House, asked Congress for authority to buy unlimited stakes in the companies and lend to them, aiming to stem a collapse in confidence. The Federal Reserve separately authorised the firms to borrow directly from the central bank. Fannie and Freddie shares rose in New York trading.

The steps would bring the US closer to giving an explicit guarantee for the debt sold by the shareholder-owned, federally chartered companies. That reflects a need for the government to bail out an economy that's been rocked by the worst housing recession in 25 years, the credit crisis, and soaring energy costs.

"They appear to be crossing the Rubicon," Sean Egan, president of Egan-Jones Ratings Co, a credit-rating company based in Haverford, Pennsylvania, said, referring to Caesar's invasion of Rome to set up a dictatorship.

The announcements followed weekend talks between the firms, government officials, lawmakers and regulators, after Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac lost about half their value last week.