MARKETS / FINANCE

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The majority of big banks that deal directly with the Federal Reserve are confident the central bank can exit from its unorthodox policies, though they don't expect the Fed to have to raise rates until 2010 or later.

Bank regulators closed three banks on Friday, bringing the number of failures so far this year to 72 as the weakened economy takes its toll on the financial services sector.

Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson had frequent conversations with Goldman Sachs Group Inc's chief executive during last fall's financial crisis, raising questions about his ties to his former firm, according to a New York Times report.

Wall Street's rally could persist next week as investors' conviction grows that the U.S. economy is on track for a recovery. But retailers' results, CPI and other consumer data could cast a pall if shoppers fail to show signs of life.

General Motors Co plans to sell shares in an initial public offering before the one-year anniversary next July of its exit from bankruptcy, the carmaker said in a regulatory filing on Friday.

Bank of America Corp on Friday revealed that its U.S. operations lost money in the second quarter as the quality of consumer and commercial loans deteriorated.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner formally requested that Congress raise the $12.1 trillion statutory debt limit on Friday, saying that it could be breached as early as mid-October.

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc posted its best quarter in nearly two years, as recovering stock markets boosted the value of its equity investments and derivatives bets.

Better-than-expected July jobs numbers have numerous private economists heralding the end of the recession, but the Obama administration is taking a more guarded view because of a worrisome rise in long-term unemployment and a drop in labor force participation.

AIG, the giant insurer bailed out by the U.S. government, posted its first profit in seven quarters on Friday, helped by large investment gains as financial markets improved, sending its shares up 20 percent.

With so-called flash orders exploding into public view, investors are wondering if the rapid-fire dissemination of their investing intentions is costing them money.

Freddie Mac, the second largest provider of U.S. home mortgage funding, on Friday posted its first quarterly profit in two years as gains from hedges and a one-time accounting change offset still-lofty credit losses.

The longest U.S. recession since World War Two is exposing gaping holes in the social safety net, putting hundreds of thousands of people at risk of falling through.

Former Madoff chief financial officer, Frank DiPascali, will be charged by the U.S. for his participation in what is termed Wall Street's biggest investment fraud.

Averill came to me, as many candidates do, with the goal of differentiating her candidacy. She had recently returned to school to secure a medical billing and coding certificate after serving in the retail

Mortgage financier on Friday reported its first quarterly profit in two years causing its shares to surge 26 percent in after hours trading. as higher interest income and gains on its hedges offset still-lofty credit losses. For the latest quarter, Freddie Mac reported a profit of $768 million compared with a year-earlier loss of $821 million. The results include $2.2 billion of securities write-downs that were more than offset by $4.2 billion in gains on the company's derivative portfolio.

Currency speculators increased their bets against the dollar in the latest week, according to Commodity Futures Trading Commission data released on Friday.

Global Swiss bank UBS AG failed to settle U.S. charges of helping wealthy American customers dodge taxes, setting the stage for at least another five days of tense negotiations over a case that goes to the heart of Switzerland's famed bank secrecy laws.

Stocks rallied on Friday, pushing the Standard & Poor's 500 to a 10-month high as the July jobs report was less bleak than feared and underpinned hopes the economy was on track for recovery.

The U.S. unemployment rate fell in July for the first time in 15 months as employers cut far fewer jobs than expected, giving the clearest indication yet that the economy was turning around from a deep recession.

Total U.S. consumer credit fell by a steeper-than-expected $10.3 billion in June, Federal Reserve data showed on Friday, and the drop in May was much bigger than previously thought.

Stocks shot up on Friday, pushing the S&P 500 to a 10-month high, as stronger-than-expected July non-farm payroll data underpinned hopes that the economy was on track for recovery.

Despite Friday's economic report indicating that the deterioration in the labor market is slowing more than earlier this year, policy makers should not conclude that the long-term unemployed no longer need assistance, a non-profit think tank said.

A shift in mindset among currency investors, who are now buying dollars on good news about the U.S. economy, may help the greenback in a week highlighted by a Federal Reserve policy meeting and data on retail sales.

For David Wessel, an award-winning journalist for the Wall Street Journal, last year's financial crisis was the The Great Panic.

The U.S. unemployment rate fell in July for the first time in 15 months as employers cut far fewer jobs than expected, providing the clearest indication yet that the economy was turning around.

Colonial BancGroup Inc said it faces a criminal probe by the U.S. Department of Justice related to accounting irregularities at its mortgage lending unit, and the struggling lender warned it may be put under receivership.

President Barack Obama said on Friday the latest U.S. unemployment figures showed the worst may be over in the economic crisis but acknowledged there was more work to be done to put the economy back on track.