Friday January 9, 2009, 6:40 pm EST
Rubin, 70, will continue to serve as a
director until his term expires at the next annual meeting in the spring,
Citigroup said. The veteran of Wall Street and
Washington has drawn criticism for his inability to prevent the bank's recent
problems that sent shares plunging and drove it to seek federal assistance. Job losses hit 2.6 million as layoff
pain deepens WASHINGTON (AP) -- A staggering 2.6
million jobs disappeared in 2008, the most since World War II, and the pain is
only getting worse with 11 million Americans out of work and searching. Unemployment hit a 16-year high of 7.2
percent in December and could be headed for 10 percent or even higher by year's
end. Friday's government figures were "a
stark reminder," said President-elect Barack Obama, that bold and
immediate government action is needed to revive a national economy that's deep
in recession and still sinking. In December, 524,000 jobs were lost, the
government estimated. Stocks slide after rise in unemployment
rate NEW YORK (AP) -- A jump in unemployment
sent stocks sharply lower Friday as investors feared that Americans won't soon
deviate from their tightened budgets. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 143
points to end the week down nearly 5 percent. The Labor Department's much-anticipated
report showed employers cut 524,000 jobs in December, a smaller decline than
the loss of 550,000 jobs economists forecast. But the unemployment rate jumped
to a 16-year high of 7.2 percent -- more than the 7 percent economists
predicted -- from 6.8 percent in November. Lost jobs were not a shock to Wall
Street, but the news still stung. Obama, Democrats look to revamp
financial bailout WASHINGTON (AP) -- Eager to shift the
course of the government's financial sector bailout fund, President-elect
Barack Obama and congressional Democrats want to apply greater scrutiny and a
more defined mission to the beleaguered $700 billion rescue program. The House could act as early as next
week on a new tack for the Troubled Asset Relief Program that would set tougher
conditions on recipients of the money, including limits on executive pay, and
require the Treasury Department to use some of the money to reduce mortgage
foreclosures. At the same time, Obama's selection for
treasury secretary, Timothy Geithner, is broadening the program's goals, aiming
to unfreeze credit for homeowners, consumers, small businesses and local
governments. Boeing to cut 4,500 jobs as airline
demand falls PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Boeing Co., the
world's second-largest airplane maker, plans to cut about 3 percent of its work
force as a weakening global economy lowers demand for jetliners. The Chicago-based company on Friday said
it expects to cut about 4,500 positions from its passenger jet business, which
has factories in the Seattle area. Many of the cuts will be in areas not
directly associated with aircraft production. The news comes a day after Boeing
reported a 15 percent decline in passenger jet deliveries for 2008, when it
faced an eight-week strike by union workers and shrinking airline demand. The
lower deliveries ensured Boeing's archrival, Europe's Airbus, retained its rank
as the world's top plane maker. GMAC to replace board; Chairman Merkin
resigns NEW YORK (AP) -- GMAC Financial Services
LLC, the financing arm of automaker General Motors Corp., on Friday said
Chairman J. Ezra Merkin is stepping down effective immediately, as it names a
new board of directors. GMAC is naming the new board under terms
of its approval by the Federal Reserve last week to become a bank holding
company. Although Merkin stepped down on Friday,
GMAC said it has until March 24 to name a new board. GMAC spokeswoman Gina
Proia declined to say why Merkin was stepping down now. Lenard Tessler,
managing director of private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP, a
partial owner of GMAC, will replace Merkin in the interim, the company said. Seattle Post-Intelligencer up for sale SEATTLE (AP) -- Hearst Corp. put
Seattle's oldest newspaper, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, up for sale Friday,
saying that if it can't find a buyer in the next 60 days, the paper will close
or continue to exist only on the Internet. Hearst Newspaper Division President
Steve Swartz broke the news in a meeting with newspaper employees. The statement said Hearst is not
considering buying The Seattle Times, the city's other daily paper. Hearst has
owned the P-I since 1921, and the paper has had operating losses since 2000,
including $14 million last year. Former Satyam chairman, managing
director arrested HYDERABAD, India (AP) -- Indian police
on Friday arrested B. Ramalinga Raju, the founder and former chairman of
beleaguered outsourcing giant Satyam Computer, days after he admitted he
doctored the company's accounts to the tune of $1 billion. Satyam's balance sheets were riddled
with "fictitious" assets and "nonexistent" cash that could
no longer be concealed after a deal intended to save the struggling company was
abandoned, Raju admitted Wednesday in a letter to the company's board. Raju and his brother, former managing
director B. Rama Raju, were arrested. The brothers resigned their posts in the
company Wednesday. Hopes for resumption of Russian gas
supplies sink KIEV, Ukraine (AP) -- Russian and
Ukrainian officials bickered into the night Friday over a deal leading to the
resumption of Russian gas supplies, squelching hopes for an end to a dispute
leaving parts of Europe in the cold and dark. European Union representatives started
work in Ukraine's capital, Kiev, to monitor the flow of gas, offering an
independent assessment that was critical to sealing a bargain. But Russia said
it would only restart pumping gas to Europe via Ukraine after a written deal is
signed. Russia wants monitors in place to
prevent what it described as Ukraine's theft of supplies meant for Europe -- a
charge Kiev hotly denies. KB Home narrows 4Q loss, but home sales
plummet LOS ANGELES (AP) -- KB Home managed to
stem its losses in the fourth quarter versus a year ago, but the homebuilder
saw sales plummet by 56 percent and said Friday it expects home prices to fall
further this year and tougher times ahead for the industry. Still, management is confident the
company's rollout of smaller, more affordably priced homes will help the
builder weather the housing and economic recessions and improve its financial
footing this year. The Los Angeles-based company said
losses shrank to $307.3 million, or $3.96 a share, in the three months ended
Nov. 30, down from a loss of $772.7 million, or $9.99 a share, in the year-ago
period. Crude falls below $40 for first time in
2009 COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Oil prices dipped
below $40 per barrel Friday for the first time this year as the government
reported the nation's worst annual job losses since World War II. People are traveling less, manufacturers
are slashing production and there are job cuts across almost every sector of
the economy, leading to a severe drop-off in energy use. What was a bright spot, rapidly falling
gasoline prices, has reversed course. By The Associated Press The Dow Jones industrial average fell
143.28, or 1.64 percent, to 8,599.18. Broader stock indicators also lost
ground. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 19.38, or 2.13 percent, to
890.35, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 45.42, or 2.81 percent, to
1,571.59. Light, sweet crude for February delivery
fell 87 cents to settle at $40.83 on the New York Mercantile Exchange after
dipping as low as $39.38. In other Nymex trading, gasoline futures
rose 2.3 cents to settle at $1.1112 a gallon. Heating oil fell 3.2 cents to
settle at $1.4877 a gallon while natural gas for February delivery lost 6.7
cents to settle at $5.516 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, February Brent crude fell 25
cents to settle at $44.42 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.