The US Federal Reserve is to inject another 800 billion US dollars into the US economy in a further effort to stabilise the financial system. US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said the stimulus package aimed to make more lending available to consumers.
President-elect Barack Obama has outlined more details of his plans to stimulate the ailing US economy, at the same time as making cuts to the budget. He said budget reform was imperative and that the nation could not sustain a system that bleeds billions of taxpayer dollars on unneeded projects.
United States President-elect Barack Obama has named his top economic advisers to oversee a huge economic stimulus package. Timothy Geithner, the president of the New York Federal Reserve, will be the next US treasury secretary.
United States shares rose sharply on Friday following a report that US President-elect Barack Obama has chosen his treasury secretary, reassuring investors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 494 points or 6.5% to end at 8,046.66. The Standard & Poor's 500 climbed 6.3%.
New York Senator Hillary Clinton has accepted President-elect Barack Obama's offer of the job of secretary of state. Hillary is expected to accept the position of secretary of state in the Obama Administration. A formal announcement is planned for after Thanksgiving.
United States consumer prices dropped by a record 1% in October compared with the previous month, as fuel costs kept falling for a third month in a row. Fuel prices were not the only reason for the record drop, as core prices, which exclude food and energy, fell for the first time since 1982.
Banking giant Citigroup announced it is planning shed 52,000 jobs with losses falling particularly heavily in London and New York. The cut - along with previously announced job losses of around 22,000 - will leave it with a global total of 300,000 employees in the near term.
United States Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said that what remains of the 700 billion USD bail out plan authorized by Congress will be left for unforeseen emergencies and to help the incoming President elect Barack Obama administration.
Troubled US carmaker Ford Motor is selling a 20% stake in Japan's carmaker Mazda Motor. The announcement follows General Motors decision to sell its 3% stake in carmaker Suzuki for 230 million US dollars to raise cash.
Falling energy costs meant US wholesale prices dropped by 2.8% in October, the biggest one-month decline since records began more than 60 years ago. The larger-than-expected fall was triggered by a 12.8% drop in energy prices, the biggest monthly decline for 22 years.