Ben Bernanke has warned that even with financial aid, it could take some time before the US economy stages a recovery, pointing to the slowdown in consumer spending and the deterioration of the labor market.

In what may be bad news for those struggling with debt, the Federal Reserve chairman said the central bank is doing everything it can to relieve problems in the banking industry and bring an end to volatility in the financial markets.

However, he warned: "Even if they stabilize, as we hope they will, broader economic recovery will not happen right away. Economic activity had been decelerating even before the recent intensification of the crisis."

Experts have applied similar caution to the financial meltdown in the UK. Jonathan Loynes, the chief European economist at Capital Economics, warned: "The economic crisis is about much more than just the state of the banks. The financial crisis might start to ease but the economic crisis has got a lot further to go."

Dean Hillier, a partner at Kearney, told the International Herald Tribune recently that he believes this year's holiday shopping season "could quite frankly be one of the worst we've seen in 25 years".

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