US mortgage lender Freddie Mac said Wednesday it would need 30.8 billion dollars more in emergency government funds to stay afloat after posting a massive 23.9-billion-dollar loss in the fourth quarter of 2008, dpa reported.
The government-backed lender, which together with the larger Fannie Mae owns or guarantees about half of all US mortgages, has been struck with massive losses amid the US housing collapse.
Both Fannie and Freddie were placed in a government conservatorship in September and lie at the heart of President Barack Obama's plans to keep mortgage lending in the United States alive.
Housing prices fell nearly 20 per cent in the past year, forcing more than 3 million homeowners into foreclosure.
Fannie Mae last month reported a 25.2-billion-dollar quarterly loss and asked the government for a 15.2-billion-dollar capital infusion from the US Treasury.
Freddie also appointed an interim chief executive, John Koskinen, after government-appointed head David Moffett said he would resign at the end of this week.
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