News on U.S. National Economy

Wall Street

2010-03-18T02:30:21Z

A television is shown on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Tuesday, March 16, 2010. Stocks held on to modest gains Tuesday after the Federal Reserve gave a mildly more upbeat view of the economy. The Fed, which also said it will keep interest rates low for "an extended period," s...

SEC boss: Agency examining companies

2010-03-17T17:45:13Z

<div><p>The head of the Securities and Exchange Commission confirmed Wednesday that the agency is investigating several companies' actions in the run-up to the financial crisis of 2008.</p><p>SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro said "it would be safe to assume" that the agency is looking very closely at the conduct ...

Fed defends watchdog role

2010-03-17T16:16:19Z

<div><p>Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke called for his central bank to keep broad regulatory powers Wednesday, amid a fierce debate about how to police Wall Street.</p><p>Bernanke told a US congressional committee that the Fed was...

Fed boss makes case to keep all banking duties

2010-03-17T14:45:49Z

<div id="subtitle">Bernanke tells Congress: Don't scale back Fed banking supervision</div><div><p>Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday urged Congress not to scale back the Fed's regulatory authority over banks. He said the Fed needs the information it gleans from its bank oversight to set interest rates and gauge the health of the banking system.</p><p>A Senate bill to overhaul financial reg...

Producer prices fall on lower energy costs

2010-03-17T13:45:33Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. producer prices in February posted their biggest fall in seven months as energy costs tumbled, validating the Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates very low on evidence of tame inflation.</p><p>The Labor Department on Wednesday said...

Fed Chair Ben Bernanke Testifies On Bank Supervision And Monetary Policy

2010-03-17T13:34:09Z

WASHINGTON - MARCH 17: Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke testifies during a House Financial Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill on March 17, 2010 in Washington, DC. The committee is examining t...

Personal Incomes

2010-03-17T13:16:04Z

In this Feb. 18, 2010 photo, a Shopper loads her car with goods as she leaves Wal-Mart in Brunswick, Maine. Personal spending jumped by a larger amount than expected in January but Americans' incomes barely budged. The weak income growth could depress spending in the months ahead, acting as a further drag on the fragile economic reco...

Summary Box: Fed boss wants to retain bank duties

2010-03-17T13:00:22Z

<div id="subtitle">Summary Box: Bernanke wants Fed to retain all banking oversight</div><div><p>MAKING THE CASE: Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke urged Congress to let the Fed keep all of its banking supervision. He argued that information gleaned from that process helps the Fed guide the economy.</p><p>SHRINKING THE FED'S BANKIN...

House panel to explore Lehman examiner report

2010-03-17T11:17:00Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A House panel will hold a hearing exploring regulatory failures leading up to the collapse of Lehman Brothers, after a court-appointed examiner report found elaborate accounting tricks that helped to hide the investment bank's in...

FTSE 100 posts solid gains

2010-03-17T11:16:07Z

<div><p>FTSE 100 shares posted solid gains on Wednesday as investors welcomed the US Federal Reserve's upbeat economic outlook, analysts said.</p><p>London's benchmark index gained 0.43 percent to finish at 5,644.63 points.</p><p>"The FTSE's early gains today were fuelled by yesterday's positive forecast from the US Federal Reserv...

Regulators to U.S. banks: tighten up on funding

2010-03-17T08:31:26Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve and other banking regulators jointly reminded financial institutions on Wednesday about the importance of managing their liquidity to avoid a repeat of the financial crisis.</p><p>The 50-page policy statement said banks and other deposit-taking firms need to keep accurate projections of...

Bernanke Financial Overhaul

2010-03-17T08:32:17Z

FILE - In this Feb. 24, 2010 file photo, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. Bernanke on Wednesday, March 17 will make the case to Congress on that the Fed should retain supervision of smaller banks. (AP Photo/M...

Fed boss to make case to keep all banking duties

2010-03-17T07:45:16Z

<div id="subtitle">Bernanke to tell Congress: Don't scale back Fed banking supervision</div><div><p>Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will make the case to Congress on Wednesday that the Fed should retain supervision of smaller banks.</p><p>In testimony prepared for a House hearing and obtained by dollar fell Wednesday against the euro after the US Federal Reserve said it would keep record-low interest rates for some time, and amid lingering hopes of help for crisis-hit Greece.</p><p>The greenback meanwhile rose against

European equities rally on upbeat Fed outlook

2010-03-17T05:16:08Z

<div><p>Europe's main stock markets rose Wednesday, after bumper gains earlier in Asia, as investors welcomed the US Federal Reserve's upbeat economic outlook, analysts said.</p><p>Asian markets were also spurred higher after the Bank of Japan held its key inter...

London stocks rally

2010-03-17T05:16:04Z

<div><p>London stocks rose Wednesday after bumper gains earlier in Asia, as investors welcomed the US Federal Reserve's upbeat economic outlook, analysts said.</p><p>In late morning European trade, London's benchmark FTSE 100 index gained 0...

Ahead of the Bell: Producer Prices

2010-03-17T04:30:07Z

<div id="subtitle">Economists expect wholesale prices to dip slightly in February reflecting lower energy costs</div><div><p>Economists expect that wholesale prices fell in February, reflecting declines in both energy and food costs.</p><p>Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect wholesale costs dipped by 0.2 percent. The Labor Department will release its Producer Price In...

Fed's rate decision boosts Asian markets

2010-03-17T04:16:10Z

<div><p>A Bank of Japan move to double the cash available to lenders combined with the US Federal Reserve's announcement it would hold rates at a record low for some time boosted Asian stocks Wednesday.</p><p>The BoJ said it would increase to 20 trillion yen (220 billion dollars) a short-term loan facility that other banks could access to free ...

Stock futures point toward higher opening

2010-03-17T04:15:59Z

<div id="subtitle">Stock futures rise ahead of opening after US, Japanese central banks reaffirm low rates</div><div><p>Stock futures are rising Wednesday after U.S. and Japanese central banks reaffirmed plans to keep interest rates low in an effort to drive economic growth.</p><p>The U.S. Federal Reserve on Tuesday kept a key lendi...