Main Street 9

General Motors and Chrysler LLC said Tuesday they could need an additional $21.6 billion in federal loans between them because of worsening demand for their cars and trucks. The two firms, in documents submitted to the Treasury Department, also detailed plans to cut 50,000 jobs worldwide by the end of the year. GM said it plans [...]

[Read more →]

Only good economic news lately has been the collapse of oil prices. At the beginning of July, just five months ago, the price of a barrel of was more than $140. By the beginning of December, it was down to about $45. That’s a drop of more than two-thirds. In the U.S., we consume about [...]

[Read more →]

Nearly a quarter of U.S. fuel production had been shut down due to the approach of Hurricane Ike, according to a government assessment released Friday. By 10:00 A.M. ET, 13 of the 26 Texas refineries, representing a production capacity of 3.6 million barrels of fuel a day, had been shut down, the Energy Department said. [...]

[Read more →]

  Oil prices fell Thursday, testing a 5-month low, as the market remained focused on slumping demand and the stronger dollar but also watched the threat that Hurricane Ike poses to the Texas Gulf Coast. Crude futures traded down 94 cents at $101.64 a barrel, having been as low as $100.18 earlier. On Wednesday, U.S. [...]

[Read more →]

The federal government’s takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may save the battered real estate market from a complete meltdown. But financial experts say the bailout won’t lead to a housing recovery just yet. Instead, some on Wall Street said the housing sector is in as tough shape today as it was before Sunday’s [...]

[Read more →]

(Fortune Small Business) — With commodity, fuel and insurance costs hitting record highs, small-business owners are anxious about next week’s federal minimum wage hike, which will require employers in 26 states and the District of Columbia to raise their base to at least $6.55. Next week’s increase of the current $5.85/hour minimum wage is the [...]

[Read more →]