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The Federal Reserve sounds a bit more upbeat about the job market and the global economy, but still the central bank is erring on the side of caution.

Following a meeting on Tuesday, the Fed’s key policymaking committee voted to make no changes to its ongoing stimulus programs.

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Obama battles job crisis

Before Obama even took office, America had lost 4.4 million jobs. Track his progress since then.

The central bank still plans to keep the federal funds rate at record lows "at least through late 2014." The Fed has held interest rates near zero since December 2008, hoping cheaper access to credit would spur economic growth.

Meanwhile, the program known as Operation Twist remains in place, shifting $400 billion from short-term to long-term bonds. The hope is that this program will bring down long-term interest rates on everything from car loans to mortgages.

With all these stimulus measures playing out, the Fed is still counting on sluggish economic growth this year. But policymakers did acknowledge some improvement, particularly in the job market.

"Labor market conditions have improved further; the unemployment rate has declined notably in recent months but remains elevated," the Fed noted.

Jobs report shows 227,000 jobs added in Feburary

Those comments were no surprise, after the Labor Department reported on Friday that employers have been adding at least 200,000 jobs each month since December. The unemployment rate remained at 8.3% for the second month in a row.

Now markets and Fed watchers are wondering, if the strong job growth continues, will the central bank change its game plan for the recovery?

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke seems reluctant to give any hints on that front just yet. As he pointed out before Congress two weeks ago, recent economic data has given off conflicting signals. Though job market indicators are improving, gross domestic product is still coming in weak.

Plus, the housing market is still slumping, Europe’s debt crisis lurks in the background, and rising oil and gas prices remain a risk to consumer spending and inflation in general.

"The recent increase in oil and gasoline prices will push up inflation temporarily, but the Committee anticipates that subsequently inflation will run at or below the rate that it judges most consistent with its dual mandate," the Fed said. The central bank aims for an inflation rate around 2% a year, after stripping out energy and food prices.

Read the full Fed statement

The Fed also noted that worldwide financial strains have "eased", although they still pose a "significant downside risk" to the economic outlook.

"That’s fairly significant," said Doug Porter, deputy chief economist at BMO Capital Markets. "The fact that they left in the caveat that they still think it poses significant downside risks, means they haven’t completely let down their guard down yet, but the Fed is recognizing that the European crisis is no longer the threat it once was to financial markets."

As he did last month, Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker dissented against the Fed’s decision Tuesday. He believes the economy will not need ultra-low interest rates as far out as late 2014.

The Fed’s next meeting is at the end of April.

Are you a saver or a retiree living on a fixed income? We want to hear how ultra-low interest rates have changed your saving habits or retirement plans. Email us your name and phone number and you could be featured in an upcoming story on CNNMoney.  

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Swiss watchmaker Swatch Group says it is being sued for 541.9 million Swiss francs ($589 million) by its former business partner Tiffany & Co. over a contract dispute.

Swatch says the New York-based jeweler is striking back after the Swiss group last year claimed 3.8 billion in damages from Tiffany.

The watchmaker accuses Tiffany of obstructing a joint venture the companies created in 2007.

Swatch said in a statement Monday that Tiffany’s counterclaim “has no factual or legal basis and will be vigorously contested.”

Tiffany couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Shares in Swatch were down 0.4 percent at 73.70 francs ($80.07) on the Zurich exchange.

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AOL joined the growing list of companies on Monday to announce suspensions of advertising on the Rush Limbaugh Show, responding to the radio host’s comments about a Georgetown law student who advocated health care coverage for contraception.

"At AOL () one of our core values is that we act with integrity," the company said in a Facebook post. "We have monitored the unfolding events and have determined that Mr. Limbaugh’s comments are not in line with our values."

Also announcing ad pulls Monday was legal adviser Tax Resolution Services and herbal supplement maker Heart & Body Extract. Other companies that had previously pulled ads in response to the controversy include QuickenLoans, technology services provider Citrix Systems (), data backup service Carbonite () and mattress company Sleep Number, a unit of Select Comfort ().

In addition, insurer Allstate (, Fortune 500) and clothing maker Bonobos said Monday that they inadvertently had ads placed on Limbaugh’s show and would be discontinuing them. A dozen companies have now ordered their ads pulled in response to the controversy.

Outcry over Limbaugh’s comments began last week after he criticized Sandra Fluke, a student at Georgetown Law, for stating her views about contraception coverage at a hearing on Capitol Hill. Limbaugh said Fluke’s advocacy made her a "slut" and a "prostitute."

Limbaugh apologized for his remarks Saturday, saying his "choice of words was not the best, and in the attempt to be humorous, I created a national stir."

Top Republicans and Democrats have denounced the talk-show host, the most popular in the nation, and President Obama called Fluke on Friday to offer his support payday advance low fees.

Premiere Networks, the CC Media Holdings (, Fortune 500) unit that syndicates Limbaugh’s radio show, said in a statement Monday that it would keep running Limbaugh, saying his show is part of its mission to air various political viewpoints.

"We believe he did the right thing on Saturday, and again this morning on his radio show, by expressing regret for his choice of words and offering his sincere and heartfelt apology to Ms. Fluke," Premiere said.

Limbaugh’s remarks have sparked a wave of online activism, with thousands signing petitions calling for advertisers to withdraw from his program.

Sears Holdings (, Fortune 500) is among the firms that have been listed as Limbaugh advertisers in online petitions, though it denied this Monday and said a local radio station had instead apparently run a recent ad "adjacent" to Limbaugh’s program.

The company said in a statement that it "does not buy media or sponsorships on the Rush Limbaugh Show" was "looking into" the matter.

Three female Iraq War veterans have also called for the program to be removed from the American Forces Network, which broadcasts to American service members around the world. Pentagon press secretary George Little said Monday, however, that the Defense Department had no plans for such a move.

- The CNN Political Unit and CNN’s Barbara Starr contributed to this report. 

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Berkshire Hathaway says its fourth-quarter net income fell 30 percent as the paper value of its derivative contracts fell, but most of its subsidiaries performed well.

Berkshire CEO Warren Buffett detailed the company’s 2011 performance Saturday in his annual letter to shareholders.

Berkshire reported fourth-quarter net income of $3.05 billion, or $1,846 per Class A share. That’s down from $4.4 billion net income, or $2,656 per share, a year ago.

Berkshire’s profit fell short of the $1,875 per share that the four analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting.

The biggest difference was the change in estimated value of Berkshire’s investments and derivative contracts. That fell to $382 million this year from last year’s $1.4 billion.

Berkshire’s quarterly revenue grew 5 percent to $37.96 billion from last year’s $36.17 billion.

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The Bank of England won

Pakistan must stem risks to a

An unprecedented outflow of New Zealand citizens last year for jobs and better pay in Australia is leaving the nation

Reinsurance Group of America reported a lower profit for the fourth quarter, recording net income of $158.5 million, or $2.15 per share, compared with $196.7 million, or $2.62 per share, in the corresponding period a year earlier.

Quarterly premiums rose 13 percent, to $2 billion.

For all of 2011, the company earned $599.6 million, or $8.09 per share, compared with $574.4 million, or $7.69 per share, the previous year. The company, based in Chesterfield, is a large global provider of life reinsurance with offices in America, Europe, Asia, Australia, South Africa and Mexico, Barbados and Bermuda.

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A government watchdog says U.S. taxpayers are still owed $132.9 billion that companies haven’t repaid from the financial bailout, and some of that will never be recovered.

The bailout launched at the height of the financial crisis in September 2008 will continue to exist for years, says a report issued Thursday by Christy Romero, the acting special inspector general for the $700 billion bailout. Some bailout programs, such as the effort to help homeowners avoid foreclosure by reducing mortgage payments, will last as late as 2017, costing the government an additional $51 billion or so.

The gyrating stock market has slowed the Treasury Department’s efforts to sell off its stakes in 458 bailed-out companies, the report says. They include insurer American International Group Inc., General Motors Co. and Ally Financial Inc.

If Treasury plans to sell its stock in the three companies at or above the price where taxpayers would break even on their investment _ $28.73 a share for AIG, $53.98 for GM _ it may take a long time for the market to rebound to that level, the report says. AIG’s shares closed Wednesday at $25.31, while GM ended at $24.92. Ally isn’t publicly traded.

It will also be challenging for the government to get out of the 458 companies as the market remains volatile and banks struggle keep afloat in the tough economy, it says.

Congress authorized $700 billion for the bailout of financial companies and automakers, and $413.4 billion was paid out. So far the government has recovered about $318 billion. The bailout is called the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP.

“TARP is not over,” Romero said in a statement. She said her office will maintain its commitment to protect taxpayers for the duration of the program.

Treasury spokesman Matt Anderson said the department “has made substantial progress winding down TARP and has already recovered more than 77 percent of the funds disbursed for the program, through repayments and other income.”

“We’ll continue to balance the important goals of exiting our investments as soon as practicable and maximizing value for taxpayers,” Anderson said.

The government has unwound its investments in four of the companies that received the most aid: Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., Chrysler Group LLC and Chrysler Financial, the automaker’s old lending arm.

On Wednesday, Treasury announced that it had sold the final batch of securities under its $368 million Small Business Administration loan program under TARP.

In Romero’s quarterly report to Congress, she said her office has uncovered and prevented fraud related to TARP. Investigations by her office have resulted in criminal charges against 10 people and three convictions, the report notes.

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