"Wall Street investment companies are borrowing from the Federal Reserve's emergency lending program at a fairly steady pace," the Associated Press reports. "The Federal Reserve said in a report Thursday that those firms averaged $16.6 billion in daily borrowing over the past week. That compared with $16.5 billion in the previous week. In the prior five weeks, investment firms had reduced their borrowing from the central bank. The program, which began March 17, is one of several unconventional actions the Fed has taken to help financial companies and the national economy overcome fallout from housing, credit and financial problems. Earlier this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said turmoil in financial markets has eased somewhat, but the situation is still 'far from normal.'"