UNEMPLOYMENT

Black teenagers bear the worst of it ? their jobless rate is at a staggering 39.2 percent (versus 23 percent for white teenagers).

In a White House address Monday, President Barack Obama said Standard & Poor's credit downgrade of the United States represented a statement on the nation's political will. Underscoring that "the U.S. is still an AAA country," Obama again called on congressional officials to make the tough decisions necessary to balance the budget long-term.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has assured President Obama he will keep his position through the current term, despite calls for him to resign in light of the S&P downgrade.

For African-Americans, the unemployment rate is at a lofty 15.9 percent, almost double the 8.1 percent for whites.

The former labor secretary described S&P?s downgrade maneuver as an ?ironic? intrusion into American politics.

The U.S. budget deficit was $1 trillion before he took the oath of office, he inherited a nation in deep recession, with a banking crisis, two wars, and now there's a credit downgrade stemming from decades of debt incurred before he was on the scene, but make no mistake about it, President Barack Obama has to create a lot of jobs for his presidency to succeed.

London witnessed one of its most appalling riots in years after police fatally shot a black resident. Violence engulfed an economically deprived neighborhood in North London when a small anti-police demonstration snowballed into looting and violence that left 26 police officers injured and led to 55 arrests.

With every gloomy economic report, debt crisis and mood swing on Wall Street, President Barack Obama's fight for re-election in 2012 gets a little tougher.

British police arrested more than 100 people overnight in London after shops were looted and officers attacked in a second night of violence that followed some of the worst disorder seen in the capital for years.

Bullion roared to record highs above $1,700 an ounce on Monday as an unprecedented downgrade to the U.S. credit rating sent investors scrambling out of riskier assets, hammering equity markets and the dollar.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who had considered stepping down after the government borrowing limit was raised, confirmed on Sunday that he will remain at his post at President Barack Obama's request.

Bullion roared to a record on Monday above $1,700 an ounce as an unprecedented downgrade to the U.S. credit rating sent investors scrambling out of riskier assets, hammering equity markets and the dollar.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will remain in the position at President Barack Obama's request. Geithner considered stepping down after the government borrowing limit was raised.

It wasn't long after Standard & Poor's lowered the United States' credit rating from AAA to AA+, for the blame game to begin.

London braced on Sunday for more violence after some of the worst riots in the British capital for years which politicians and police blamed on criminal thugs but residents attributed to local tensions and anger over hardship.

The rioting in Tottenham, north London comes three decades after the deadly summer of 1981 when cities across England witnessed massive civil unrest.

London picked itself up on Sunday from some of the worst violence seen in the British capital for years which politicians and police blamed on criminal thugs but residents attributed to local tensions and anger over rising financial hardship.

The U.S. dollar may weaken and Treasury yields rise when Asian markets reopen on Monday, though any selling in response to ratings agency S&P's downgrade of the United States is likely to be tempered by the escalating crisis in the euro zone.

More than 250,000 Israelis have staged protests in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem cities over the rising cost of living, reflecting the middle-class discontent over the country's inability to address the long-pending housing needs.

The S&P cut in the U.S. long-term credit rating to AA-plus is an unprecedented blow. It called the outlook "negative," signaling another downgrade is possible in the next 12 to 18 months. The U.S. dollar may weaken and Treasury yields rise when Asian markets reopen on Monday.

China bluntly criticised the United States on Saturday one day after the superpower's credit rating was downgraded, saying the "good old days" of borrowing were over.