Stock Market

Last year, as the gravest financial crisis since the Great Depression shook the banking system, Ben Bernanke seemed nearly as beleaguered as the institutions themselves.

The Federal Reserve chief had initially underestimated the crisis — and then seemed to inject new risk by unleashing breathtaking sums of money to fight it. Now, a strengthening economy is raising Bernanke's standing just as President Barack Obama must decide whether to reappoint him.