BARACK OBAMA

President Barack Obama will meet with the leaders of a panel he created to probe the worst oil spill in U.S. history on Tuesday, as a giant slick from BP's blown-out Gulf of Mexico well poses a new threat to the coasts of Mississippi and Alabama.

Oil from BP's out-of-control Gulf of Mexico oil spill could threaten the Mississippi and Alabama coasts this week, U.S. forecasters said on Monday, as public anger surged over the country's worst environmental disaster.

The House of Representatives on Friday passed a scaled-back economic-stimulus package of tax breaks and safety net spending that would raise taxes on fund managers and multinational corporations.

Consumer spending was unexpectedly flat in April after six straight months of gains, but growing consumer confidence in the economic outlook suggested consumption will remain strong this quarter.

The world's top countries face more wrangling over a global bank tax next week and crunch time over beefing up capital and cutting risks at big banks.

BP Plc still does not know whether its top kill operation designed to plug the biggest oil spill in United States history will be successful and puts the cost of tackling the disaster so far at $930 million.

Warren Buffett, the chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway Inc, will testify next week before the U.S. panel examining the causes of the deep financial crisis.

Small investors angry with Wall Street about their battered portfolios see little relief coming from the U.S. Congress as it attempts the most sweeping overhaul of financial regulation since the 1930s.

(Reuters) - Laws requiring U.S. restaurant chains to list calorie counts have not stopped them from offering unhealthy meals that pack in calories, fat and salt, a group that encourages healthy food said on Tuesday.

President Barack Obama, seeking to boost U.S. jobs in an election year, called on Tuesday for Congress to pass a $30 billion package to aid small business lending that he hopes will increase hiring.

Two key U.S. lawmakers clashed on Tuesday over cracking down on swaps trading as a clearer shape emerged for a House-Senate panel that must finalize a major rewrite of financial regulation.

Democrats in Congress are racing against the clock to renew unemployment benefits for hundreds of thousands of jobless Americans in legislation that also raises taxes on investment-fund managers and multinational companies.

Democrats in Congress are racing against the clock to renew unemployment benefits for hundreds of thousands of jobless Americans, in legislation that also raises taxes on investment fund managers and multinational companies.

The Senate named 12 senators, including tough Wall Street critics and more moderate members, Tuesday to a panel that will finalize the most sweeping overhaul of financial regulations since the 1930s.

President Barack Obama is to renew a push on Tuesday to persuade the U.S. Congress to approve a $30 billion plan to spur lending to small businesses and trigger job creation.

Shareholders have sued the board of BP Plc for failing to monitor safety and exposing the company to potentially enormous liability related to the Deepwater spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, according to court documents.

U.S. representative Barney Frank, a fierce critic of Wall Street and close ally of the Obama administration, will head a House-Senate committee to hammer out a final bill on financial regulation reform.

Representative Barney Frank, a fierce critic of Wall Street and close ally of the Obama administration, will head a House-Senate committee to hammer out a final bill on financial regulation reform.

Top White House economist Lawrence Summers said on Monday the United States must assure investors it will curb the budget deficit over time, while delivering short-term fiscal stimulus to boost growth.

One of the chief architects of U.S. financial reform will chair the House-Senate panel that hammers out the final version of the Wall Street overhaul, a spokesman for the Democratic lawmaker said on Monday.

China struck a conciliatory note in talks with the United States on Monday by vowing to spur domestic demand and keeping a guarded opening to exchange rate reform, which the Obama administration says is needed to rebalance the global economy.