Details of the diary of Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, show the extent to which Wall Street executives, along with money managers and cabinet officials, played a role in his policy about-turn on 17 August.

Bernanke, much to Wall Street's dismay, decided to hold the US's benchmark federal funds rate. But ten days later, the chairman cut the discount rate, which represents the cost of borrowing from the central bank's standing facility, by 50 basis points.

Bloomberg reports