SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Oct 19 (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Monday said that the performance of the dollar and the U.S. economy will depend on the government's success in controlling the country's budget deficit.
"Our policy-makers recognize that we need to develop a fiscal exit strategy that will involve a trajectory toward sustainability," Bernanke said in response to a question after a speech to a conference hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.
"That is critically important in order to maintaining confidence in our economy and confidence in our currency. I know that is very well understood in Washington," he said. (Reporting by Mark Felsenthal; Writing by Alister Bull; Editing by James Dalgleish)