House passes bill taxing bonuses for AIG, others
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Denouncing a "squandering of the people's
money," lawmakers voted decisively Thursday to impose a 90 percent tax on
millions of dollars in employee bonuses paid by troubled insurance giant AIG
and other bailed-out companies.
The House vote was 328-93. Similar legislation has been
introduced in the Senate and President Barack Obama quickly signaled general
support for the concept.
The outcome may not have been complicated. But the lopsided vote
failed to reflect the contentious political battle that preceded it.
New jobless claims fall more than expected to 646K
WASHINGTON (AP) -- New jobless claims fell more than expected last
week, but continuing claims set a new record for the eighth straight week and
few economists expect the labor market to improve anytime soon.
The Labor Department said Thursday that initial requests for
unemployment insurance dropped to a seasonally adjusted 646,000 from the
previous week's revised figure of 658,000. That was better than analysts'
expectations.
But continuing claims jumped 185,000 to a seasonally adjusted
5.47 million, another record-high and more than the roughly 5.33 million that
economists expected.
Fed drives down mortgage rates; inflation may loom
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Mortgage rates tumbled to historic lows
Thursday after the Federal Reserve's sudden decision to print $1.2 trillion and
pump it into the economy, a move that also triggered warning signs of inflation
-- a weaker dollar and the highest oil prices of the year.
The national average rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage fell
to 4.94 percent, down nearly a quarter of a percentage point from a day
earlier, according to financial publisher HSH Associates.
It was the first time the average had fallen below 5 percent
since the publisher began keeping records in 1979. But mortgages were not
exactly being passed out freely. Lenders remain extremely strict about who
qualifies.
Stock rally fades as investors assess Fed moves
Banking and other financial shares pulled the market lower
Thursday as investors worried the the Fed's plan
would hurt the dollar and revive inflation. But energy stocks rose, getting a
lift from soaring crude oil prices.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 85.78, or 1.2 percent, to
7,400.80. The retreat came a day after stocks surged in reaction to the Fed's
aggressive plans to pump more than $1 trillion into the financial system by
buying Treasury bonds and stepping up its purchases of other debt securities.
Auto suppliers to get $5 billion in aid
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Treasury Department will pump up to $5
billion in financing into troubled auto parts suppliers to prevent an auto
industry collapse that could undermine the government's work to restructure
General Motors and Chrysler.
The funds, announced Thursday, will be made available from the
government's Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP, in a financial entity
similar to a revolving credit. Large suppliers would be eligible for financing
auto parts they have shipped to the
U.S. automakers -- General Motors Corp., Chrysler LLC and Ford
Motor Co. -- will have the option of using the program and designate the
companies that need financing, giving them a large role in determining which
parts suppliers will survive.
Federal appeals court hears Madoff jail
argument
NEW YORK (AP) -- An appeals court considering whether Bernard Madoff should remain jailed pending sentencing grilled
lawyers for both sides Thursday, noting to prosecutors that Madoff
could have fled the country before his massive Ponzi
scheme was uncovered.
The judges were equally skeptical about arguments put forward by Madoff defense lawyer Ira Sorkin.
One judge suggested Madoff was sneaky, noting that
nearly all of his property was in his wife's name and that he had mailed
jewelry to relatives and friends over the holidays even though he was under a
court order not to move any assets.
GE says finance unit is sound despite bad economy
WASHINGTON (AP) -- General Electric Co. assured investors
Thursday that its financial unit is stable and will at least break even this
year, even under a worst-case scenario of double-digit unemployment and a
sharper slump in the economy.
One the world's biggest companies, Fairfield, Conn.-based GE makes
everything from light bulbs to jet engines, but last year it generated nearly
half its $18 billion in earnings from GE Capital, its finance arm. Fears that
the business, which finances credit cards, airplanes, factories and overseas
mortgages, could see growing losses on loans gone bad, have helped pushed down
GE stock 71 percent in the past year.
Oil prices reach new high for 2009 as dollar falls
Benchmark crude for April delivery surged $3.47, or 7 percent, to
settle at $51.61 a barrel on the
Crude prices have increased 11.6 percent since OPEC ministers met
in
FedEx and UPS gear up for more tough times
NEW YORK (AP) -- Despite gaining new customers from the shrinking
U.S. presence of DHL and lower fuel prices, the world's two largest package
delivery companies are battening down the hatches as they prepare for weak
global economic conditions to get even worse.
FedEx Corp. said Thursday it will cut more jobs and trim wages
again, after reporting its fiscal third-quarter profit tumbled 75 percent on sliding
revenue.
Economists and analysts consider FedEx and larger rival UPS to be
bellwethers of the global economy, since they deal with such basic indicators
of company health as orders and product shipments. Both companies have been
courting former customers of DHL, which pulled out of ground deliveries in the
Blockbuster arranges new loans, loses $360M in 4Q
UNDATED (AP) -- Blockbuster Inc. suffered a fourth-quarter loss
of $360 million to conclude another bleak year, but the struggling video rental
chain has lined up critical financing to buy it more time to adapt to
ever-fiercer competition from the Internet and cable services.
Despite the tentative agreements with JP Morgan Chase Bank and
two other lenders, Blockbuster warned Thursday its auditor is likely to raise
doubts about the Dallas-based company's ability to remain afloat.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 85.78, or 1.2 percent, to
7,400.80.
The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 10.31, or 1.3
percent, to 784.04, while Nasdaq
composite index fell 7.74, or 0.5 percent, to 1,483.48.
Benchmark crude for April delivery surged $3.47, or 7 percent, to
settle at $51.61 a barrel on the
In other Nymex trading, gasoline for
April delivery jumped 7.16 cents to settle at $1.4373 a gallon, while heating
oil rose 9.2 cents to settle at $1.36 a gallon. Natural gas for April delivery
jumped 49 cents to settle at $4.174 per 1,000 cubic feet. In