2012-05-22 08:43:37
The International Monetary Fund has issued a tough assessment of U.K. economic policy, urging the coalition government and Bank of England to do more to boost demand in the economy.
The IMF's report of its latest consultation with British authorities released Tue......
2012-05-22 08:41:12
Teachers and students from every level of Spain's education system went on strike Tuesday to protest wide-ranging government spending cuts, erecting makeshift tombs at university campuses to symbolize what they claim will be the death of the country's schooling system.
......
2012-05-22 08:30:46
The Italian government is to free up to €30 billion ($38.25 billion) to make overdue payments to businesses that have supplied goods or services to state institutions.
Prime Minister Mario Monti said the measures will "give fuel" to business......
2012-05-22 08:18:03
The 17-country eurozone risks falling into a "severe recession," the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development warned on Tuesday, as it called on governments and Europe's central bank to act quickly to keep the slowdown from dragging down the global economy....
2012-05-22 07:01:02
Stocks advanced Tuesday ahead of a summit of European leaders that's expected to be dominated by calls to boost economic growth across the continent, though ongoing worries over the upcoming Greek election kept the rally in check.
Europe remains the focus of atte......
2012-05-22 06:56:00
Russian President Vladimir Putin named a new Cabinet on Monday that retained some of the outgoing government's key figures but added a few fresh faces, cementing his grip on power as he begins his third presidential term.
Putin, who has ruled Russia for more 12 y......
2012-05-22 04:10:59
OECD warns risk of severe recession in eurozone rising as it cuts economic forecasts.......
2012-05-22 03:11:39
The core of his presidential candidacy under attack, Mitt Romney has yet to shape a playbook to defend a quarter-century in the business world that created great riches for himself and great hardship, at times, for some American workers.
Romney and his aides have......
2012-05-22 03:05:00
An AP News Analysis......
2012-05-22 02:05:26
Australia and Malaysia have signed a free trade agreement that includes opening the services sector when it comes into force next year.
Officials say the pact, concluded after 11 rounds of talks, will allow duty free entry for all Malaysian goods into Australia a......
2012-05-22 02:01:16
Argentina's nine-year economic expansion appears to be slowing sharply, according to analysts, who predict growth of 2.5 percent to 3 percent this year, half the 5.1 percent projected by the government's 2012 budget and down sharply from last year's 8.9 percent rise.
......
2012-05-22 01:20:55
Hopes China will announce new measures to boost economic growth helped push Asian stock markets higher Tuesday.
Investors were encouraged by weekend statements from Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who promised to spur growth in the world's second-largest economy, a s......
2012-05-22 01:10:03
Oil prices hung below $93 a barrel Tuesday in Asia, holding gains from the previous day as crude followed global stock markets higher.
Benchmark oil for June delivery was up 10 cents to $92.67 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Th......
2012-05-21 21:47:03
President Barack Obama sought to undermine Mitt Romney's key rationale for his presidential candidacy Monday, sharply attacking his Republican challenger's background as a venture capitalist and arguing that profit-making alone is not a qualification for the White House.
......
2012-05-21 21:19:30
A new survey shows economists are growing slightly more optimistic about recovery in the job and housing markets but expect other pillars of the economy to remain weak.
The National Association for Business Economists says in a report issued Monday that its forec......
2012-05-21 21:08:19
Gov. Lincoln Chafee said Monday that former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling has laid off some employees at his troubled video gaming company and that state officials are continuing to try to "protect every penny" of Rhode Island's investment in the company.
......
2012-05-21 19:14:11
Dominican President-elect Danilo Medina thanked his supporters Monday for a first-round win in an election that left many in the main opposition party bitterly claiming fraud and his main opponent refusing to concede.
Medina shrugged off any doubts about his win ......
2012-05-21 18:03:00
The U.N. labor office says it expects 12.7 percent of youth globally to be unemployed in 2012 and the rate to remain "at the same high level" at least four more years.
The International Labor Organization says nearly 75 million of those aged 15 to 24 ar......
2012-05-21 17:59:28
President Barack Obama on Monday defended his criticism of presumptive Republican presidential Mitt Romney's ties to the private equity firm Bain Capital, saying it was rightly part of the campaign debate because Romney himself was emphasizing his business background.
......
2012-05-21 16:45:24
ALBERTO ARSIE,Associated PressCOLLEEN BARRY,Associated Press
Cheese producer Oriano Caretti woke up to the shaking earth, and then to the roar of some 30,000 39-kilogram (86-pound) wheels of Parmesan cheese crashing to the ground in the warehouse next to his home.
The 6.0-magnitude quake north of Bologna that killed seven ......
2012-05-21 13:23:28
Serbia is still likely to get a government that hopes to join the European Union despite the election of a pro-Russian nationalist as the country's new president, officials said Monday.
Tomislav Nikolic, a former ultranationalist ally of the late Serbian strongma......
2012-05-21 13:18:47
Germany has again made clear its opposition to French proposals for jointly-issued bonds from the 17-nation eurozone as a way to create economic growth and ease the region's financial crisis.
At Saturday's G-8 summit, German Chancellor Angela Merkel -- under urgi......
2012-05-21 12:54:14
Greece's newly installed caretaker prime minister conferred with party leaders Monday ahead of this week's European Union summit that's expected to focus on ways of kick starting economic growth across the continent.
Panagiotis Pikrammenos, a senior judge who has......
2012-05-21 10:51:59
Supporters of the leading opposition candidate say they'll challenge the results of the Dominican Republic's presidential election, complaining of vote-buying and other fraud after a governing party official appeared to win the first round.
Danilo Medina of the c......
2012-05-21 10:19:39
Bankia, the nationalized Spanish bank which had to reassure savers last week to fend off a reported run on its deposits, needs to strengthen its capital defenses by as much as €7.5 billion ($9.56 billion), the country's economy minister said Monday.
T......
2012-05-21 05:16:54
As the torch relay traverses Britain ahead of the July 27 opening of the London Games, the IOC is looking much further ahead: Where will the Olympic flame burn eight years from now?
Against a backdrop of global financial turmoil and political uncertainty, Interna......
2012-05-21 03:38:57
Bargain-hunting helped Asian stock markets edge upward Monday, but gains were limited as investors remained unconvinced that the world's major economies nailed a solution to the European debt crisis following a summit in Washington.
Markets posted only muted gain......
2012-05-21 02:55:59
BEN FOX,Associated PressEZEQUIEL ABIU LOPEZ,Associated Press
A governing party official appeared to have scored a first-round win in the Dominican Republic's presidential election but supporters of his main opponent complained of vote-buying and other forms of fraud and said they would challenge the results.
Danilo Medina ......
2012-05-20 17:45:18
Nationalist candidate Tomislav Nikolic won the Serbian presidency on Sunday, a result that adds to the political turmoil in the Balkan country and could slow down its attempts to join the European Union.
The Center for Free Elections and Democracy, an independent......
2012-05-20 16:59:25
Dominicans formed orderly lines at voting stations across the country Sunday to choose a new president from a field that includes a brash former president whose last term ended with an economic crisis and a technocrat from the governing party that has spent the past eight years on a......
2012-05-20 15:12:36
In 2010, the man who'd helped Boston win its first World Series in more than 80 years came to Rhode Island promising the job-starved state something even better: hundreds of good jobs, millions of dollars in tax revenue and a foothold in the booming business of video games.
......
2012-05-20 13:02:19
Dmitri Donskoy figures he'll save only $20 a month on his electricity bill after solar panels are installed on the roof of his home under a state-subsidized program. But he shrugs it off because the green energy appeals to his environmental concerns.
Donskoy, a s......
2012-05-20 11:53:22
Serbians voted Sunday in a presidential election runoff that pits pro-European Union Boris Tadic against nationalist Tomislav Nikolic who wants closer ties with Russia and is threatening protests if he loses, claiming vote rigging in the first round.
The outcome ......
2012-05-20 06:05:50
The Palestinian campaign to boycott goods produced in Jewish settlements in the West Bank has received a boost from abroad with an unprecedented South African proposal to have the name of Israel dropped from labels on merchandise made in the settlements.
The Sout......
2012-05-20 01:29:55
BEN FELLER,Associated PressJIM KUHNHENN,Associated Press
Confronting an economic crisis that threatens them all, President Barack Obama and leaders of other world powers on Saturday declared that their governments must both spark growth and cut the debt that has crippled the European continent and put investors worldwide on edge.
......
2012-05-19 19:11:46
Like many Greeks left unemployed by their country's economic tailspin, Dimitris Spachos finds it easier to talk about his nation's problems than his own.
Enormous debt accumulated over decades sent the country into a recession so deep it kills 200 businesses and ......
2012-05-19 19:05:29
A former president whose single term ended with the deepest economic crisis in the modern history of the Dominican Republic is seeking redemption Sunday as he faces an old rival in what is expected to be a close election to lead the Caribbean's top tourist destination.
......
2012-05-19 15:56:09
Confronting an economic crisis that threatens them all, President Barack Obama and leaders of other world powers on Saturday declared that their governments must both spark growth and cut the debt that has crippled the European continent and put investors worldwide on edge.
......
2012-05-19 15:45:04
Along a busy street in the Argentine capital, the man in the brown suit doesn't need to speak above a whisper to sell his goods: "Money change. Money change." Those who want to swap pesos for dollars follow him through a run-down mall to a lingerie store. There, amid bras ......
2012-05-19 14:39:53
President Barack Obama and other leaders of the Group of Eight industrial nations expressed hope Saturday that Greece will remain in the eurozone as they huddled for a shirt-sleeves summit aimed at keeping Europe's economic troubles from multiplying and spreading around the world....
2012-05-19 13:07:58
They've been cruising the region's chilly waters for centuries and today number in the hundreds of thousands, but much remains unknown about the Northeast's recreational boaters.
Now, a major survey aims to find out more about them, including where they go, how t......
2012-05-19 09:58:08
Are Republican lawmakers deliberately stalling the economic recovery to hurt President Barack Obama's re-election chances? Some top Democrats say yes, pointing to GOP stances on the debt limit and other issues that they claim are causing unnecessary economic anxiety and retarding gr......
2012-05-19 07:13:31
A bomb exploded outside a high school in southern Italy named after a slain anti-Mafia prosecutor as students arrived for class Saturday, killing a teenage girl and wounding several other classmates, officials said.
The device went off a few minutes before 8 a.m.......
2012-05-18 23:46:10
President Barack Obama and leaders of other major industrial powers grappled Friday with options to solidify world resolve against development of an Iranian nuclear bomb and encourage a more forceful response to worsening violence in Syria.
Obama will have the ea......
2012-05-18 19:41:00
An exploratory oil well off the northern coast of Cuba has proved a failure and will be capped and abandoned, Spanish company Repsol said Friday, a disappointment for a cash-strapped nation hoping for an economic lifeline.
Trial and error is par for the course in......
2012-05-18 19:00:55
EDITOR'S NOTE -- Facebook began selling stock to the public Friday in the most talked-about market debut in years. The stock closed 23 cents above its initial offering price, at $38.23. Two Associated Press business writers debate whether the stock is a smart buy.
...
2012-05-18 18:29:39
It's Facebook's big day.
The site, which was born in a dorm room eight years ago and has grown into a worldwide network of almost a billion people, is making the most talked-about stock market debut in years.
Here's some of what Associated Pre......
2012-05-18 18:27:16
Federal regulators have seized a small bank in Alabama, bringing to 24 the number of U.S. banks that have failed so far this year.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Friday that it closed Alabama Trust Bank NA in Sylacauga.
The bank had ......
2012-05-18 18:21:26
Concern grew for the stability of Spain's place in the fragile eurozone economy after reports of a rise in the level of bad loans on the books of its banks and word from the government Friday that it may have to revise its 2011 budget deficit upwards for a second time.
......
2012-05-18 17:56:17
Chaos in Greek politics and Spanish banking combined this week to underscore just how fragile Europe's economy remains after an eviscerating austerity regime that has spawned unemployment, desperation and misery. And there is no respite in sight, as Germany's finance minister predic......
2012-05-18 17:15:46
The Spanish government says it may have to revise its 2011 budget deficit upwards for a second time after spending by regional governments exceeded forecasts.
The Finance Ministry said in a statement the deficit could reach 8.9 percent of GDP after four of its 17......
2012-05-18 17:13:13
Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney on Friday criticized a restored 19th century bridge as another "Bridge to Nowhere" and a fresh symbol of the waste he says is rampant in President Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan.
From the parking lot......
2012-05-18 17:12:00
It's going to take more than Facebook's initial public offering to push the stock market higher.
Facebook shares rose 23 cents above their $38 offering price. It seemed like everything else fell.
The Dow Jones industrial average has been in a ......
2012-05-18 17:01:51
Opposition to Iran obtaining nuclear weapons is widespread around the world, including in neighboring countries Egypt, Jordan and Turkey, and support for tough economic sanctions is high, according to poll released Friday.
Support for military intervention to pre......
2012-05-18 15:10:06
In Virginia, Gov. Bob McDonnell runs TV ads hailing the state's business growth. Ohio Gov. John Kasich tells anyone who will listen that 100,000 jobs have been created or retained on his watch. And Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder promotes a state budget that's on solid ground for the firs......
2012-05-18 14:54:03
The House passed a $642 billion defense budget for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1 that adds billions of dollars to President Barack Obama's spending blueprint and rejects several of his proposals. The White House has threatened a veto. A look at some of the bill's disputed provisi......
2012-05-18 12:14:38
Concerns that Europe's debt crisis could drag down parts of the continent's banking system rattled global markets on Friday, while the IPO of social network Facebook failed to buoy spirits on Wall Street.
Ratings agency Moody's downgraded 16 Spanish banks late Th......
2012-05-18 11:34:30
Rights groups are asking President Barack Obama to re-evaluate the U.S.-Ethiopia relationship over allegations the leader of the East African nation is becoming increasingly repressive.
The requests came just before Obama on Friday announced $3 billion in private......
2012-05-18 11:33:56
Unemployment rates fell in two-thirds of U.S. states last month, evidence that modest economic growth is boosting hiring in most areas of the country.
And in many states, unemployment has fallen well below the national average, which was 8.1 percent last month. R......
2012-05-18 11:07:24
AYE AYE WIN,Associated PressYADANA HTUN,Associated Press
Officials and businessmen in Myanmar welcomed U.S. plans to ease economic sanctions, saying Friday it will benefit both countries in a market long cut off from most Western investment.
However, human rights activists are wary and some exporters in Myanmar say the......
2012-05-18 09:28:40
Investors who see opportunity in Asia's growth typically think of China first. That's one reason why there's no shortage of options for U.S. investors looking to buy a stock mutual fund that focuses on China.
But venture southward to another Asian giant, India, a......
2012-05-18 06:49:32
Serbs seem poised this weekend to re-elect a reformist who arrested Bosnian Serb general Ratko Mladic, rejecting a nationalist promising closer ties with Russia -- in a sign that the troubled Balkan nation is edging away from its 1990s war legacy.
Boris Tadic, wh......
2012-05-18 06:29:12
Germany's finance minister estimates that Europe's spiraling debt crisis could last up to another two years.
Wolfgang Schaeuble also says it's vital that during this weekend's summit in Washington Europe's leaders show the world they are moving more quickly to st......
2012-05-18 05:29:49
China's government on Friday rejected a U.S. antidumping ruling against its makers of solar power equipment and Chinese manufacturers warned possible higher tariffs might hurt efforts to promote clean energy.
The conflict has worsened U.S.-Chinese trade tensions.......
2012-05-18 05:10:27
World stocks fell Friday after credit downgrades slapped on Spanish banks unnerved investors already worried about the stability of the 17-country euro currency union.
The fall in European shares followed a sharp downturn in Asia where markets were also rattled b......
2012-05-18 03:54:43
The leaders of eight of the world's biggest economies meet this weekend outside Washington, seeking to keep Europe's debt crisis from spiraling out of control and jeopardizing fledgling recoveries in the U.S. and elsewhere.
The turmoil in Greece is draining confi......
2012-05-18 03:39:44
Oil prices fell to near $92 a barrel Friday in Asia, extending a sharp two-week selloff as the latest twists in Europe's debt crisis added to a gloomy economic outlook.
Benchmark oil for June delivery was down 26 cents to $92.30 a barrel at late afternoon Singapo......
2012-05-18 01:27:20
Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou has leveraged growing economic ties with China to reduce tensions to their lowest level since the two sides split in 1949. China's incessant effort to draw the democratic island closer politically has been on the back burner, and as Ma's second term beg......
2012-05-17 23:24:53
Japan raised its assessment of the economy for the first time in nine months as the recovery from last year's earthquake and tsunami disaster gains momentum.
The Cabinet Office in a report Friday said reconstruction, rising consumer spending and exports are lifti......
2012-05-17 20:08:53
The Olympic torch was passed to London -- witnessed, appropriately, by hundreds of Greeks huddled under umbrellas.
Seeking some relief from the country's economic and political woes, Greeks sat on the stone steps of the ancient stadium in Athens on Thursday to wa......
2012-05-17 19:56:38
The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits was unchanged last week, suggesting modest but steady gains in the job market.
The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly unemployment aid applications stayed at a seasonally adjusted 370,000, same as th......
2012-05-17 19:13:25
Greece swore in 300 legislators for just one day before it dissolves Parliament and calls new elections, among them 21 lawmakers from Golden Dawn -- arguably the most far-right party to be involved in a European national legislature since Nazi-era Germany.
Former......
2012-05-17 19:07:21
The U.S. has plans in place to attack Iran if necessary to prevent it from developing nuclear weapons, Washington's envoy to Israel said, days ahead of a crucial round of nuclear talks with Tehran.
Dan Shapiro's message resonated Thursday far beyond the closed fo......
2012-05-17 17:59:08
Unable to shake their worries about Europe, investors drove stocks to a four-month low Thursday and piled into bonds, sending the yield on the 10-year Treasury note close to an all-time low.
The Dow Jones industrial average posted its 11th loss in 12 days after a......
2012-05-17 17:55:42
Confidence in Spain's banks and its teetering economy was shaken Thursday after a newspaper reported that depositors were rushing to withdraw their money from Bankia, a troubled bank that was effectively nationalized just one week ago.
Adding to the anxiety, rati......
2012-05-17 16:25:43
The price of oil fell Thursday as worries persisted about the future of Greece in the European Union and the long-term impact that region's financial crisis could have on the global economy. Here's how energy contracts traded.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange:......
2012-05-17 14:49:23
The winds blowing through Canada's broad St. Lawrence Valley and across Vermont's hilltops are stirring up an international tempest over which country's laws should govern how those breezes are harnessed for electricity.
Some residents of the Quebec town of Stans......
2012-05-17 14:31:46
When leaders from eight of the world's biggest economies meet this weekend outside Washington, the focus will be on how to prevent Europe's debt crisis from spiraling out of control.
The turmoil in Greece is draining confidence in the 17 countries that use the eu......
2012-05-17 14:25:12
French President Francois Hollande's new Socialist-led government adopted a 30 percent pay cut Thursday, a gesture of shared sacrifice by leaders who must now reduce the country's massive debts and tackle spiraling unemployment.
The new Cabinet's first meeting, j......
2012-05-17 13:45:39
The U.S. has plans in place to attack Iran if necessary to prevent it from developing nuclear weapons, Washington's envoy to Israel said, days ahead of a crucial round of nuclear talks with Tehran.
Dan Shapiro's message resonated Thursday far beyond the closed fo......
2012-05-17 12:43:24
Venezuela's planning minister says the South American country's economy grew 5.6 percent during the first three months of 2012.
Jorge Giordani says the economy could grow by as much as 7 percent this year.
Giordani says this year's economic ex......
2012-05-17 11:24:13
The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits was unchanged last week, suggesting modest but steady gains in the job market.
The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly unemployment aid applications stayed at a seasonally adjusted 370,000, the same l......
2012-05-17 11:22:57
The House is debating a $642 billion defense budget for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1 that adds billions of dollars to President Barack Obama's spending blueprint and rejects several of his proposals. The White House has threatened a veto. A look at some of the bill's disputed pr......
2012-05-17 10:56:12
An American businessman jailed for more than four years in Dubai under suspicion of corruption has started a hunger strike to push for a trial and seek greater U.S. diplomatic pressure in his case.
Zack Shahin, a former CEO of Dubai-based Deyaar Realty, is among ......
2012-05-17 09:56:39
British Prime Minister David Cameron on Thursday urged Europe to sort out its currency crisis, calling on the 17-country eurozone "to make-up or it is looking at a potential break-up."
"Either Europe has a committed, stable, successful eurozone wit......
2012-05-17 07:28:23
Shares in Bankia, the recently nationalized Spanish bank, are plunging by more than 20 percent on a local report that customers have withdrawn more than €1 billion ($1.27 billion) since the state took it over last week.
The shares were off 16 percent ......
2012-05-17 04:49:24
Oil prices rose slightly to above $93 a barrel Thursday in Asia as traders mulled whether concern over Europe's debt crisis justifies extending a sharp two-week sell-off.
Benchmark oil for June delivery was up 38 cents to $93.19 a barrel at late afternoon Singapo......
2012-05-17 03:46:48
WHO: The Group of Eight is made up of the leaders of the United States, Japan, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Russia. The Kremlin won't be represented at the Camp David meetings Friday and Saturday by President Vladimir Putin, who is sending his predecessor, Dmitry Medv......
2012-05-17 03:37:56
The House is debating a $642 billion defense budget for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1 that adds billions of dollars to President Barack Obama's spending blueprint and rejects several of his proposals. The White House has threatened a veto. A look at some of the bill's disputed pr......
2012-05-17 02:55:25
National foreclosure trends took a positive turn in April, as the number of homes seized by banks declined and fewer properties entered into the foreclosure process.
But state-level data point to potentially more home repossessions ahead in Florida and many of th......
2012-05-17 01:30:54
Japan's economy grew an at annual rate of 4.1 percent in the first quarter amid a gradual recovery from last year's catastrophic earthquake and tsunami.
The Cabinet Office said Thursday that the preliminary growth figures showed that a rebound in consumer spendin......
2012-05-17 00:06:23
What only weeks ago was seen as a serious threat to the economic recovery could now turn into a stimulus everyone can love.
Oil and gasoline prices are sinking, giving relief to businesses and consumers who a few weeks ago seemed about to face the highest fuel pr......
2012-05-16 22:56:33
Vice President Joe Biden, campaigning in Democratic territory with high unemployment, went after Republican Mitt Romney's business background Wednesday and cast him as a corporate raider more interested in profits than people.
Biden said the former businessman fa......
2012-05-16 21:14:47
ELENA BECATOROS,Associated PressNICHOLAS PAPHITIS,Associated Press
A senior judge has been sworn in to head Greece's caretaker government for a month as the debt-crippled country lurches through a political crisis that threatens its membership in the 17-nation eurozone.
The political uncertainty is worrying Greece's internationa......
2012-05-16 20:32:02
Wall Street doesn't seem to like J.C. Penney's new everyday low pricing any better than Main Street does.
The department store chain's stock plunged nearly 20 percent on Wednesday -- the biggest decline in at least four decades, including the 1987 stock market cr......
2012-05-16 19:31:43
Wall Street doesn't seem to like J.C. Penney's new everyday low pricing any better than Main Street does.
The department store chain's stock plunged nearly 20 percent on Wednesday -- the biggest decline in at least four decades, including the 1987 stock market cr......
2012-05-16 18:15:02
ELENA BECATOROS,Associated PressNICHOLAS PAPHITIS,Associated Press
A senior judge was sworn in Wednesday to head Greece's caretaker government for a month as the debt-crippled country lurches through a political crisis that threatens its membership in the 17-nation eurozone.
The political uncertainty is worrying Greece's interna......
2012-05-16 17:58:07
The states of Missouri and Kansas are divided here only by the yellow stripe of State Line Road. It's a single community, but the division is sharp when it comes to the cutthroat business of economic development.
The two states have burned through hundreds of mil......
2012-05-16 17:55:19
A threat that's been hanging over the economy is starting to look a lot less menacing.
Oil and gasoline prices are sinking, giving relief to businesses and consumers who a few weeks ago seemed about to face the highest fuel prices ever.
Presid......
2012-05-16 17:37:52
Maybe the U.S. economy's strength this winter wasn't just weather-related after all.
Home construction is near a three-year high. And factory output has risen in three of the year's first four months.
The data released Wednesday suggest growth......
2012-05-16 17:37:48
Federal Reserve policymakers are open to further efforts to stimulate the U.S. economy if growth falters or threats escalate.
Minutes of the central bank's April 24-25 meeting released Wednesday stated that "several members" thought additional Fed suppo......
2012-05-16 17:32:38
The unending turmoil in Greece spread fallout across the financial markets Wednesday. The Dow Jones industrial average fell for the ninth day out of 10, and gold, oil, and the euro all dropped to multi-month lows.
Greece called a new round of elections for June 1......
2012-05-16 17:29:44
EDITOR'S NOTE _ An occasional look at the claims in political advertising.......
2012-05-16 17:22:32
A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Wednesday:
MADRID -- Spain's prime minister warned that the country faced the danger of being locked out of international markets as investors continued to fr......
2012-05-16 16:46:29
HOUSING STARTS RISE: U.S. homebuilding rose to nearly a three-year high in April. Builders broke ground at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 717,000 homes, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.
FACTORY OUTPUT UP: U.S. factory output increased for the third t......
2012-05-16 16:07:14
Cristobal Steffens and his sister Natalie were the first in their family to go to college, and both emerged with good jobs. But they also joined the 500,000 Chileans who have had to take on sometimes-crushing debts. Their father put up the family home as collateral for student loans......
2012-05-16 15:23:43
Jean-Marc Ayrault, a moderate Socialist with an affinity for Germany, took office as France's prime minister on Wednesday and got to work by naming his Cabinet -- a lineup that includes allies and veterans of previous governments.
Socialist President Francois Hol......
2012-05-16 14:36:30
Former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling asked Rhode Island for additional help to save his video game company Wednesday, prompting state leaders to consider whether the firm is viable enough to justify further investment.
Schilling briefed Gov. Lincoln Chafee and t......
2012-05-16 14:17:29
Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders says he will file a lawsuit to block the Netherlands from ratifying the permanent European bailout fund.
Wilders, leader of the Netherlands' third-largest political party, forced the collapse of the all-conservative government last mo......
2012-05-16 12:51:53
Republican Gov. Scott Walker released updated employment figures Wednesday that show Wisconsin actually added a small number of jobs during his first year in office, hoping to undermine a central argument of those trying to recall him who argue he has hurt the state economy.
......
2012-05-16 12:40:19
A former mortgage company chief executive convicted of orchestrating a nearly $3 billion fraud scheme is asking a federal appeals panel to reverse his conviction and send his case back for a retrial.
An attorney for former Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Cor......
2012-05-16 12:14:48
An International Monetary Fund official on Wednesday said the eurozone's third-largest economy is "on the right track" and has made notable progress in the six months since Premier Mario Monti took over.
An IMF review of Italy found its reform measures ......
2012-05-16 12:14:29
Irish voters would be playing a dangerous game with their country's economic future if they reject the European Union fiscal treaty in a referendum this month, Finance Minister Michael Noonan warned Wednesday.
Noonan told a Dublin conference that the Irish govern......
2012-05-16 10:11:41
European Central Bank head Mario Draghi said Wednesday that the "strong preference" of the ECB's leadership is for financially troubled Greece to stay in the euro.
Draghi said that there's no provision in the European Union's basic treaty for a country ......
2012-05-16 08:48:59
For the Italian entrepreneur whose business and marriage were falling apart, a tax bill was the last straw. Armed with a shotgun and two revolvers, Luigi Martinelli took 15 hostages at a government tax office last week, demanding only that his story be heard.
Ita......
2012-05-16 08:41:10
Spain's prime minister warned Wednesday that the country faced the danger of being locked out of international markets as investors continued to fret about the future of the euro and Greece's place in the 17-country eurozone.
"Right now there is a serious ri......
2012-05-16 07:49:45
The Bank of England has trimmed its growth forecast for the U.K. economy and warned that inflation will remain above target for another year -- assuming the country isn't knocked off course by turmoil in the eurozone.
In its quarterly Inflation Report released We......
2012-05-16 07:44:36
France raised €9 billion ($11.6 billion) in a successful pair of bond auctions Wednesday that also saw some of its long-term borrowing costs move up.
Borrowing costs, as measured by yields or interest rates, for a slew of bonds with maturities between......
2012-05-16 05:17:34
World stocks dived Wednesday after a failure by Greece's political leaders to form a coalition government set the stage for new elections next month, keeping Europe's debt crisis center stage.
The turmoil in Greece sent European shares lower in early trading. Bri......
2012-05-16 04:35:30
The head of a major Greek business organization has lashed out at the country's politicians for failing to form a coalition government and triggering new elections, accusing them of acting like "undertakers"
A national retail association leader Vassilis......
2012-05-16 04:06:00
Oil prices dropped to fresh six-month lows near $92 a barrel Wednesday in Asia after a report showed U.S. crude supplies surged more than expected last week.
Benchmark oil for June delivery was down $1.84 to $92.14 a barrel, the lowest since November, at late aft......
2012-05-15 23:30:21
Asian stocks fell Wednesday after a failure by Greece's political leaders to form a coalition government set the stage for new elections next month, keeping Europe's debt crisis centerstage.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index dropped 0.8 percent to 8,831.04 as investors re......
2012-05-15 23:14:45
PALLAVI GOGOI,Associated PressTAMARA LUSH,Associated Press
The CEO of JPMorgan Chase offered a quick but blunt apology to shareholders Tuesday for a $2 billion trading loss that "should never have happened" and survived a push to strip him of the title of chairman of the board.
CEO Jamie Dimon, who in recent ye......
2012-05-15 20:18:38
Turns out, J.C. Penney shoppers don't prefer predictable pricing over blockbuster bargains -- at least not yet.
The department-store chain on Tuesday reported a larger-than-expected first-quarter loss largely because customers were turned off by the retailer's ne......
2012-05-15 20:04:31
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Tuesday painted President Barack Obama as a reckless steward of the country's economy and, as proof, pointed to "a financial crisis of debt and spending that threatens what it means to be an American."
Th......
2012-05-15 19:06:45
GREG KELLER,Associated PressSYLVIE CORBET,Associated Press
Socialist Francois Hollande assumed France's presidency Tuesday, inheriting a country fearful for its financial future and jetting off immediately to Berlin to tackle his most pressing problem: Europe's debt crisis.
A flash of lightning nearly derailed Hollande's......
2012-05-15 18:27:25
Rhode Island leaders are working to help former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling's video game company remain viable after it failed to make a scheduled $1.125 million payment to the state's economic development agency.
Gov. Lincoln Chafee said Tuesday that the stat......
2012-05-15 17:43:16
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande agreed Tuesday to spend the coming weeks discussing proposals for generating economic growth in Europe, a first step to bridging their differences over how to tackle the eurozone debt crisis.
......
2012-05-15 17:41:07
'PILING ON' AGAINST JANE ORIE IS CORRECT ON TAXPAYERS' BEHALF
A professor of law at the University of Pittsburgh characterizes it as "piling on," but prosecutors' attempt to force convicted state Sen. Jane Orie to repay more than $1.5 million in legal f......
2012-05-15 17:11:10
RELIEF AT THE PUMP: Americans are seeing some relief from higher gas prices. Consumer prices were flat in April, largely because of lower gas costs.
RETAIL SALES TICK UP: Cheaper gas may be combining with job growth to power more spending on big purchases. Sales ......
2012-05-15 17:08:00
Europe's latest political impasse cast a gloom over financial markets Tuesday. The euro plunged, and the Dow Jones industrial average extended a slide that has wiped out nearly 5 percent of its value in two weeks.
The biggest action of the day came shortly before......
2012-05-15 16:49:19
ELENA BECATOROS,Associated PressNICHOLAS PAPHITIS,Associated Press
Greece headed into a month of political uncertainty after power-sharing talks collapsed Tuesday, triggering new elections that could determine whether the country retains its tenuous position in Europe's currency.
Nine tortured days of fruitless talks to build a ......
2012-05-15 15:51:17
A senior lawmaker with Chancellor Angela Merkel's party said Tuesday that Germany is willing to discuss growth-promoting measures with France -- so long as a European budget-discipline pact stands.
Peter Altmaier, chief parliamentary whip of Merkel's conservative......
2012-05-15 12:44:47
Cheaper gas won't be enough to get many more Americans on the road this summer. They're still too worried about their jobs and the economy.
Economists and tourism experts are expecting only a small uptick in summer travelers. Gas prices are lower, but still high ......
2012-05-15 12:19:25
Francois Hollande walked up the steps of the Elysee Palace in Paris and walked out Tuesday as France's first Socialist president since 1995, taking the helm of a country worried about Europe's future and pledging to make it a fairer place.
The 57-year-old rode to......
2012-05-15 12:05:01
Sub-Saharan African nations will not be able to sustain their accelerated economic growth unless they eliminate hunger, the U.N. said in a report Tuesday.
Many sub-Saharan economies are growing fast but the growth rates have not translated into significant hunger......
2012-05-15 11:03:16
South Africa's main opposition party called a march Tuesday to make a point about economic policy, but ended up facing rock-throwing counter-protesters in scenes that illustrated that democracy and traditions of political tolerance are still young 18 years after apartheid was topple......
2012-05-15 10:44:00
Germany prevented the economy of the 17 countries that use the euro from falling into a recession in the first quarter of the year despite a raging debt crisis that's raising the specter of the breakup of the currency union.
The country, which accounts for over a......
2012-05-15 10:13:02
California Gov. Jerry Brown called on state lawmakers to embrace austere cuts and urged voters to approve tax hikes in outlining a revised budget.
Brown on Monday proposed $8.3 billion in cuts across education, health care and welfare programs in laying out a pla......
2012-05-15 09:24:13
U.S. consumer prices were flat last month as cheaper gas offset modest increases for food, clothing and housing. The data indicate that inflation remains in check.
The Labor Department said Tuesday that the seasonally adjusted consumer price index was unchanged i......
2012-05-15 05:44:13
Market concerns over the European economy are showing signs of growing after a closely-watched survey of German investors recorded a sharp drop in sentiment after five straight months of increases.
The ZEW institute reported Tuesday its main index dropped by 12.6......
2012-05-15 05:06:50
Eurozone avoids going back in recession as official figures show flat output in Q1 .......
2012-05-15 04:45:36
Oil prices hovered below $95 a barrel Tuesday in Asia near a five-month low amid concern about Europe's debt crisis.
Benchmark oil for June delivery rose 2 cents to $94.80 a barrel at late afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile ......
2012-05-15 04:24:34
France's economy failed to grow in the first quarter of the year, according to data released Tuesday, raising concerns that the country could be heading toward a recession.
Gross domestic product was stagnant from January to March, the national statistics agency ......
2012-05-15 03:59:25
The Czech Statistics Office says the country remained stuck in recession as its economy suffered a sharper downturn than expected and shrank by 1.0 percent.
The economy contracted for the third consecutive quarter after it was down by 0.3 percent in the 2011 four......
2012-05-14 23:23:05
California's sputtering economic recovery is putting a heavier-than-expected drag on state tax revenue, leading Gov. Jerry Brown on Monday to propose deep budget cuts across an array of government services and warn again that even more cuts are ahead if voters reject his tax-hike in......
2012-05-14 20:27:38
Leading European Union finance officials promised to stand by Greece as a member of the eurozone provided it sticks to its bailout terms and stays the course of its painful austerity program to prevent even worse economic hardship.
Greeks fed up with the painful ......
2012-05-14 19:53:25
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon owned up to stock analysts and went on TV to accept blame for a $2 billion trading mistake. Next he faces shareholders, who are considerably less wealthy since the blunder was disclosed.
While Dimon may be greeted by colorful protes......
2012-05-14 19:08:54
President Barack Obama tried Monday to tarnish Mitt Romney as a corporate titan who got rich by cutting rather than creating jobs, opening a new effort to undercut the Republican's claims that his background of business success is just what America needs in a time of deep economic u......
2012-05-14 17:04:36
A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Monday:
BRUSSELS -- Leading European Union finance officials pleaded with Greece not to renege on its bailout terms and to stay the course of its painful aust......
2012-05-14 16:47:16
A political stalemate in Greece rattled financial markets worldwide on Monday, driving U.S. stocks lower.
The euro sank to a three-month low against the dollar and borrowing costs for Spain and Italy jumped as bond traders anticipated that financial stress could ......
2012-05-14 15:30:14
The U.S. government is hoping that Monday's bankruptcy filing by Ally Financial Inc.'s troubled mortgage business will help the company repay its government bailout faster.
Residential Capital LLC, or ResCap, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York......
2012-05-14 14:03:15
Just hours after Francois Hollande is sworn in Tuesday as France's next president, he will head to Germany, underscoring the importance of the German-French relationship at the core of finding a solution to Europe's debt crisis.
Hollande has demanded that the fis......
2012-05-14 11:05:03
Spain got caught up in the uncertainty surrounding the European single currency and the electoral stalemate in Greece Monday as it saw its borrowing costs rise and stock prices fall at alarming rates.
The country's foreign minister issued an urgent appeal Monday ......
2012-05-14 09:17:24
German Chancellor Angela Merkel insisted Monday that a heavy state election defeat for her party won't weaken her as she grapples with Europe's deepening debt crisis.
Facing an emboldened opposition at home as a national vote looms next year, Merkel made clear th......
2012-05-14 05:03:00
World stock markets fell Monday as optimism over a move by China's central bank to encourage lending were offset by lingering uncertainty about crisis-struck Greece.
European stocks plummeted in early trading. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.8 percent and Germny's DAX ......
2012-05-14 03:57:33
On the upper eastern edge of Ohio lies a valley built on the sweat of the working class, where steel mills sit mostly shuttered but a once-struggling Chevy plant endures. It is a place filled with union halls and blue-collar families for whom the auto bailout meant survival, deliver......
2012-05-14 03:56:26
Oil prices fell below $95 a barrel Monday in Asia amid investor concern that China's economy, the world's second-largest, is slowing faster than previously expected.
Benchmark oil was down $1.33 to $94.80 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile ......
2012-05-13 15:32:09
On the upper eastern edge of Ohio lies a valley built on the sweat of the working class, where steel mills sit mostly shuttered but a once-struggling Chevy plant endures. It is a place filled with union halls and blue-collar families for whom the auto bailout meant survival, deliver......
2012-05-13 13:53:19
It often pays to zig when everybody else zags. If you were brave enough to put cash into the stock market three years ago -- and very few small investors were -- you've doubled your money.
European stocks have lost about 15 percent since mid-March. Renewed worrie......
2012-05-13 13:22:01
When voters in Greece and France got the chance, they dealt a resounding "No!" to parties backing austerity measures. The Irish could be next to give the European Union's austerity plans a black eye.
A May 31 referendum here asks the public to approve a......
2012-05-13 09:11:11
ALAN CLENDENNING,Associated PressJOSEPH WILSON,Associated Press
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Sunday defended his government's harsh austerity measures aimed at correcting Spain's grim economic forecast, one day after tens of thousands of Spaniards took to the streets to protest his handling of the country's worst crisis in decades.
......
2012-05-13 09:09:47
The class of 2012 is leaving college with something that many graduates since the start of the Great Recession have lacked: jobs.
To the relief of graduating seniors -- and their anxious parents -- the outlook is brighter than it has been in four years. Campus jo......
2012-05-13 08:17:09
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Sunday defended his government's harsh austerity measures aimed at correcting Spain's grim economic forecast, one day after tens of thousands of Spaniards took to the streets in protest of his handling of the country's worst crisis in decades.
......
2012-05-13 04:07:34
The leaders of China, South Korea and Japan said Sunday that they will work together to try to calm tensions on the Korean peninsula. The three largest East Asian economies also took steps toward deepening their economic ties by laying the groundwork for a regional free trade area....
2012-05-12 23:59:25
California's budget deficit has swelled to a projected $16 billion -- much larger than had been predicted just months ago -- and will force severe cuts to schools and public safety if voters fail to approve tax increases in November, Gov. Jerry Brown said Saturday.
......
2012-05-12 21:32:15
The reputation that Jamie Dimon honed for decades on Wall Street has been severely damaged in a matter of days.
In the 1980s and 1990s, he was the protege of banking industry legend Sanford Weill. In the early 2000s, he took over Bank One, an institution few beli......
2012-05-12 15:31:01
At least 100,000 Spaniards angered by grim economic prospects and the political handling of the international financial crisis turned out for street demonstrations in the country's cities Saturday, marking the one-year anniversary of a movement that inspired similar pressure groups ......
2012-05-12 14:15:11
The opening of the first of four Ohio casinos will test the promise of new jobs, a tax windfall and urban revival in the heart of the Rust Belt.
New signs are up to direct visitors, the sidewalks have been power-washed, crosswalks have been freshly painted and 1,......
2012-05-12 14:00:33
Thousands of Spaniards angered by their grim economic prospects and political handling of the international financial crisis turned out for street demonstrations in the country's cities Saturday, marking the one-year anniversary of a movement that inspired similar pressure groups in......
2012-05-12 09:39:41
Wanda Ramey stood on the University of Colorado campus, cane in one hand, "Close The Pay Gap" sign in the other. The rally for equal pay among women in the workplace was the 65-year-old spitfire's second stop in a day of meetings and protests.
A registe......
2012-05-12 08:25:22
The leaders of France's far-left and far-right parties will run for the same seat in parliamentary elections next month, pitting charismatic former presidential candidates who tapped into dissatisfaction with the country's mainstream leaders against each other.
T......
2012-05-12 06:25:30
Less than two weeks after being punished with new U.N. sanctions, North Korea has sent its ceremonial head of state and two top economic officials to Singapore and Indonesia on a trip that appears aimed at drumming up outside investment.
Kim Yong Nam, president o......
2012-05-12 02:30:29
DON MELVIN,Associated PressROD McGUIRK,Associated Press
In Europe, where more than 200,000 people thronged a Berlin rally in 2008 to hear Barack Obama speak, there's disappointment that he hasn't kept his promise to close the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, and perceptions that he's shunting blame for the financial crisis across the A......
2012-05-12 00:26:31
JPMorgan Chase faces intense criticism for claiming that a surprise $2 billion loss by one of its trading groups was the result of a sloppy but well-intentioned strategy to manage financial risk.
More than three years after the financial industry almost collapsed......
2012-05-11 18:57:35
In business, you're only as good as your last good deed.
Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, in recent years has tried to repair a reputation that's been damaged by decades of criticism and legal troubles. Community activists have blamed it for damaging the n......
2012-05-11 17:07:50
Its capital is blighted with earthquake rubble. Its countryside is shorn of trees, chopped down for fuel. And yet, Haiti's land may hold the key to relieving centuries of poverty, disaster and disease: There is gold hidden in its hills -- and silver and copper, too.
......
2012-05-11 16:58:05
The presidential candidates tried to put aside politically risky talk of gay rights Friday and return to Americans' top worry, the economy, in two states critical to the hopes of President Barack Obama and his rival Mitt Romney.
Obama discussed how to help homeow......
2012-05-11 16:51:34
JPMorgan's surprise $2 billion trading loss prompted a sell-off in financial stocks Friday, with smaller declines across the broader market as investors decided this was more of a problem for investment banks than for other industries.
Most of the 10 industries i......
2012-05-11 16:45:12
Refocusing on the economy, President Barack Obama on Friday pushed Republicans to back housing policies the White House says would help shore up struggling homeowners and prevent foreclosures.
Against the backdrop of a middle-class neighborhood in economically ha......
2012-05-11 16:21:47
A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Friday:
BRUSSELS -- The European Union says that a recession brought on by a crippling debt crisis could give way to a modest recovery later this year -- prov......
2012-05-11 13:22:19
The largest-ever United Nations conference, a summit billed as a historic opportunity to build a greener future, appears to be going up in smoke.
U.S. President Barack Obama likely won't be there, and the leaders of Britain and Germany have bowed out. The entire ......
2012-05-11 13:06:07
Major oil and gas companies such as Russia's Novatec, Italy's ENI, France's Total, and Malaysia's Petronas are among 15 firms and consortiums that are seeking to carry out exploratory drilling for gas deposits off southern Cyprus, the island's commerce minister said Friday, despite ......
2012-05-11 11:47:30
FRANKFURT, Germany -- Let Greece go. It's a possibility that's being considered more and more publicly in Europe.
There have been two and a half years of bailouts and broken promises by Greece to reform. The result: a fifth year of recession and, this week, polit......
2012-05-11 10:44:13
French President-elect Francois Hollande suggested Friday that the government of outgoing leader Nicolas Sarkozy underestimated the country's budget problems and wants a new audit of France's books.
But Hollande, a Socialist elected Sunday to lead the world's fif......
2012-05-11 09:53:25
Republican Mitt Romney is trying to shift his campaign's focus back to the sluggish economic recovery and will use a commencement speech at an evangelical university to cast strong families as central to a strong economy.
"Although opportunities seem scarce ......
2012-05-11 08:48:45
Portugal's Parliament has approved a government proposal to scrap four annual public holidays from next year in an effort to improve the country's economic competitiveness.
After a decade of scant growth, Portugal last year needed a â‚&......
2012-05-11 08:14:27
The Spanish government was expected to unveil a new reform package for its troubled banks Friday in a desperate bid to convince investors that the sector is solvent and the country has a strategy to avoid the bailout fate of Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
The pack......
2012-05-11 08:07:58
Poland's lawmakers on Friday approved a controversial government plan to raise the retirement age to 67 for most Poles, a key part in efforts to cut state debt, maintain robust growth and keep up investor confidence in this emerging economy.
Following a heated de......
2012-05-11 05:15:19
World stock markets were mostly lower Friday as traders eyed a large surprise trading loss at JPMorgan Chase, political upheaval in Greece and signs of slowing economic growth in China.
In trading in Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares dropped 0.......
2012-05-11 01:23:09
Asian stock markets were lower Friday as traders eyed political upheaval in Greece and signs of slowing economic growth in China.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell 0.4 percent to 8,972.24 and South Korea's Kospi lost 1.3 percent at 1,919.20. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fel......
2012-05-10 17:42:40
Gov. Chris Christie on Thursday vetoed legislation that would set up a state health insurance exchange as part of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul, saying the state shouldn't rush to enact such a law and possibly create new burdens on taxpayers while the constitutionali......
2012-05-10 17:02:24
A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Thursday:
MADRID -- The Spanish government's decision to take control of the country's fourth-largest bank highlights the problem gripping the nation's financ......
2012-05-10 16:42:57
The Dow Jones industrial average broke a six-day losing streak Thursday, notching a small gain after the government released better unemployment numbers.
The Dow rose 19.98 points to close at 12,855.04, after rising almost 100 points earlier in the day. The Stand......
2012-05-10 16:41:57
The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits fell last week, a hopeful sign that hiring could pick up in coming months.
Here are states with the biggest increases and decreases in applications. The data are for the week ended April 28, one week behind ......
2012-05-10 13:25:34
An elderly home opened by Britain's Princess Diana in a Zimbabwe township during her African charity crusades has run out of money nearly two decades after its opening, workers at the home said Thursday.
The Society for the Aged Destitute has had to reduce the nu......
2012-05-10 12:59:32
The number of international adoptions has fallen to its lowest point in 15 years, a steep decline attributed largely to crackdowns against baby-selling, a sputtering world economy and efforts by countries to place more children with domestic families.
Globally, t......
2012-05-10 12:11:52
The Spanish government's decision to take control of the country's fourth-largest bank highlights the problem gripping the nation's financial system. Banks are taking huge losses on real estate loans that have soured, but the deeper the government gets involved in providing aid, the......
2012-05-10 12:08:56
Investors pulled money from U.S. stock mutual funds and added to bond funds in April as the stock market had its first losing month of the year. But investors were clearly willing to take on some risk, as funds investing in foreign stocks attracted new cash.
Inve......
2012-05-10 10:54:58
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday that many businesses and consumers are finding it easier to borrow as banks shore up their balance sheets.
"Notwithstanding the various headwinds, credit conditions in the United States have improved signif......
