WASHINGTON, April 1 (Xinhuanet) -- US President George W. Bush has selected Ben S. Bernanke, a member of the Federal Reserve Board, to be the next chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, the White House announced on Friday.

Federal Reserve Board Governor Ben S. Bernanke talks about productivity in the U.S. economy at a business forum in this Feb. 24, 2005 file photo. (AP)

    Bush intended to nominate Bernanke, of New Jersey, to be a member of the Council of Economic Advisers, and upon confirmation by the Senate, to designate him chairman of the three-member council, which advises the president on economic affairs, the White House said in a statement.

    Bernanke, who also serves as a professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton University, would succeed Harvey Rosen, who began to serve in the post earlier this year. Bernanke is one of the leading candidates to succeed Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan when he steps down early next year.

    Also on Friday, Bush nominated Kenneth J. Krieg, director for Program Analysis and Evaluation in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, to be under secretary of defense for acquisition, technology, and logistics, and David A. Sampson, assistant secretary of commerce for economic development, to be deputy secretary of commerce. Enditem