ECONOMY . . . WALKING THE INTEREST-RATE TIGHTROPE

Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan called the U.S. economic outlook "as bright as it has been in decades," but sent the signals investors hate most: the Fed might again take steps to prevent inflation by boosting interest rates. Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen, trying to stand tall a day after the dollar sank to a post-World War II low against the Japanese yen, vowed action if needed to bolster the greenback. Economists said the two men are in a bind: allow the dollar to fall further, and potentially provoking inflation, or raise interest rates and dampen U.S. economic growth.