WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama offered stern words for Wall Street and a prediction of 10 percent US unemployment even as he said the "engines" of an economic recovery have begun to turn.

"Wall Street seems to maybe have a shorter memory about how close we were to the abyss than I would have expected," Obama said, referring to criticism of the government's growing role in the economy and markets.

Obama, in an interview with Bloomberg News on the eve of the release of his plan to revamp financial-market regulation, voiced confidence the economy would recover soon, while warning that robust growth was needed if the US is to rein in its budget deficit without raising taxes on most Americans.