Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke speaking Thursday..

By buying bonds and keeping interests rates low, the Fed hopes banks will lend more money to businesses and that investors will pour money into businesses.

"The modest pace of growth continues to be inadequate to reduce unemployment," said Fed chairman Ben Bernanke.

For now, the Fed's Open Market Committee sees unemployment in the U.S. holding steady through 2012, though it expects the economy to see better growth mid-2013.

Bernanke noted less than half of the 8 million jobs lost during the recession have been restored.

The goal for now Bernanke said is move the economy "in the right direction to make sure we don't stagnate."

Until the Fed sees "ongoing, sustained improvement in the labor market," it will continue to have to take aggressive action, he said. "The last six months have not been that."

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