Republicans retake House
Republicans win control of the House of Representatives on a promise to scale back government spending and tackle budget deficits that have hovered at their highest levels relative to the economy since...
View ArticleObama asks for $3 trillion in cuts
A report by a bipartisan deficit reduction panel commissioned by Obama advocates $3 trillion in spending cuts and $1 trillion in revenue increases - mainly by closing loopholes in the tax code - over...
View Article"Gang of Six" start talks
Sometime this month, six Republican and Democratic senators, known as the "Gang of Six," began talks on a long-term deficit-reduction deal they can present to their parties.
View ArticleBudget passes, then gets defeated
The House passes a budget for the current fiscal year that would cut $61 billion from last year's levels. The Democratic-controlled Senate defeats it one month later. -- REUTERS
View ArticleBrink of a shutdown
Obama and congressional leaders bring the government to the brink of a shutdown before they agree on a budget for the current fiscal year that cuts $38 billion from last year's levels. Billed as the...
View ArticleObama proposes new plan
After Obama's initial proposal is criticized as inadequate, the president lays out a new deficit-reduction plan that would save $4 trillion over 12 years. He proposes that Vice President Joe Biden lead...
View ArticleMedical care cut as budget passes
The House passes a budget that would cut spending by $6 trillion over 10 years, in part by scaling back medical care for the elderly and the poor. -- REUTERS
View ArticleBiden starts ball rolling on tax reform
Biden and negotiators from both parties hold their first meeting as top Republicans say there will likely be no broad agreement on tax reform and healthcare. -- REUTERS Photo: AFP
View ArticleBoehner puts his foot down
House Speaker John Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, says any increase in the debt ceiling must be matched by an equal amount of spending cuts. The Treasury Department estimates it needs at...
View ArticleRepublicans attack Democrats
House Republicans release a spending outline for the coming fiscal year that has deep cuts in education, labor and health programs cherished by Democrats. -- REUTERS
View ArticleUS hits $14.3 trillion debt limit
The United States reaches its $14.3 trillion debt limit. The Treasury Department begins tapping other sources of money to cover the government's bills. -- REUTERS
View Article"Gang of Six" talks falter
The "Gang of Six" talks falter as a leading conservative, Republican Senator Tom Coburn, drops out due to an impasse over healthcare. -- REUTERS
View ArticleRepublicans pressure Obama
The House of Representatives rejects a measure to raise the debt limit in a vote staged by Republicans to pressure Obama to agree to accompanying spending cuts. Senior Democrats decry the vote as a...
View ArticleBiden makes no headway
In a sixth meeting of the Biden group, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner argues that tax increases need to be part of the equation, but Republicans remain unmoved. -- REUTERS
View ArticleWiggle room opens up
Some 34 Senate Republicans vote to repeal tax breaks for ethanol, a sign that there may be some wiggle room in the party's no-tax-increase stance. -- REUTERS
View ArticleBiden talks reach impasse
Republicans declare an impasse in the Biden talks, saying Democrats are insisting on roughly $400 billion in new revenue by closing tax breaks for the wealthy and certain business sectors. -- REUTERS
View ArticleIMF warns US
The International Monetary Fund says the United States must lift its debt limit soon to avoid a "severe shock" to global markets and a still-fragile economic recovery. Obama calls for new steps to spur...
View ArticleUS home prices fall
US home prices rose in June for a third consecutive month, but fell compared to a year earlier. Data analysis company Corelogic's home price index rose 0.7 per cent in June from the month before,...
View ArticleTalks continue, but no progress
Democratic legislators discuss a scaled-back deal that would avert default but force Congress to tackle the debt ceiling issue again before the 2012 elections. The White House rejects the idea. --...
View ArticleA secret meeting
Obama and Boehner meet secretly to discuss "grand bargain" that would save roughly $4 trillion over 10 years through a tax code overhaul and trims to benefit programs. -- REUTERS
View ArticleObama invites top lawmakers to White House
Obama invites top lawmakers to the White House to restart negotiations and clinch a deal by July 22.
View ArticleUncertainty is hurting economy: Obama
A dismal jobs report focuses new attention on the sputtering economy. Obama says uncertainty about the debt ceiling talks is hurting economic expansion.
View ArticleUS credit rating at risk
Ratings agency Standard & Poor's says there is a one-in-two chance it could cut the U.S. credit rating if talks remain stalemated. Obama suspends talks and gives party leaders 24-36 hours to...
View ArticleObama calls for 'shared sacrifice' to solve debt issue
WASHINGTON - US PRESIDENT Barack on Saturday renewed his call for a compromise in solving America's debt problem, saying it would take a 'balanced approach' and 'shared sacrifice' for Democrats and...
View ArticleObama and Boehner discuss $3 trillion deal
President Obama and House Speaker Boehner reportedly discussed a $3 trillion deficit-cutting deal. The deal upsets many Democrats for not including enough tax rises to offset spending cuts. In...
View ArticleBoehner breaks off debt talks with Obama
WASHINGTON - REPUBLICAN House Speaker John Boehner announced on Friday he was pulling out of talks with the White House on averting an early August debt default and would work with the Senate to reach...
View ArticleObama makes rare primetime speech
WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama stepped up the pressure on Republicans over the US debt crisis Monday, scheduling a rare primetime speech to warn of 'incalculable damage' if a compromise is not...
View ArticleSenate Democrats say 'No' to Boehner
In a setback to the negotiations, all 53 members of the Senate Democratic caucus announce their opposition to the plan, in a letter to Speaker of the House John Boehner.
View ArticleUS Senate to move on debt on Friday
WASHINGTON - DEMOCRATIC US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (pictured) announced he would take steps on Friday that could set up a razor's edge final vote on averting a disastrous debt default on an...
View ArticleUS 'almost out of time' on debt deal: Obama
WASHINGTON - PRESIDENT Barack Obama on Friday warned the United States was 'almost out of time' to agree a deal to raise the nation's debt ceiling, insisting that a compromise was within reach. 'This...
View ArticleUS Senate rejects debt bill
WASHINGTON - THE Democratic-led US Senate voted late on Friday to set aside a House-passed Republican bill to avert a potential ruinous debt default, setting the stage for weekend talks on forging a...
View ArticleLast-ditch effort to meet deadline
The White House enters into intense negotiations with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, in a last-ditch effort to hammer out a bipartisan deal to raise the federal debt limit.
View ArticleLawmakers finally strike a deal
WASHINGTON - US PRESIDENT Barack Obama announced late on Sunday that he and top lawmakers had reached an 11th-hour deal to avert a disastrous debt default that would have sown chaos in the world...
View ArticleWorries about economy overrides relief
GROWING concern about the US economy is overriding any relief investors may be feeling now that Washington appears to have a debt deal that will avert a default by the federal government. The House of...
View ArticleData shows fall in US factor orders
WASHINGTON - NEW orders received by US factories fell in June, pulled down by weak demand for transportation equipment, government data showed on Wednesday. The Commerce Department said orders for...
View ArticleReport shows slow-down in US service sector
NEW YORK - THE pace of growth in the US services sector ticked down unexpectedly in July to the lowest level since February 2010, according to an industry report released on Wednesday. The Institute...
View ArticleJitters in stock market
NEW YORK - US STOCKS opened mixed on Wednesday after Tuesday's over two per cent drop, following the release of a better-than-expected report on private-sector job creation. The Dow Jones Industrial...
View ArticleUS stock market crashes
Investors fled Wall Street in the worst stock-market selloff since the middle of the financial crisis in early 2009 in what has turned into a full-fledged correction. The Dow and the S&P tumbled...
View ArticleGreek PM urges EU to move fast on debt rescue
ATHENS - PRIME Minister George Papandreou urged Greece's European partners on Friday to move fast to enact a recent summit deal on a second rescue for Greece, intended also to prevent contagion. 'The...
View ArticleUS loses AAA credit rating for first time
WASHINGTON - STANDARD & Poor's cut the US credit rating for the first time in history on Friday, saying the country's politicians are increasingly unable to come to grips with its massive fiscal...
View ArticleAsian stock markets plunge
ASIAN stock markets on Friday plunged the most since the darkest days of the financial crisis, as a witch's brew of debt and economic fears sent investors running for the exits. The market had already...
View ArticleUS hits back against downgrade
WASHINGTON - THE US Treasury on Friday hit back against a Standard and Poor's downgrade of its AAA credit rating, saying there was a US$2 trillion (S$2.43 trillion) error in the agency's calculations....
View ArticleG-7 to discuss central bank action
BRUSSELS - FINANCIAL officials from the Group of Seven industrialised nations will discuss how to coordinate action among their countries' central banks following several days of market panic and a...
View ArticleImpact of US downgrade uncertain: Analysts
WASHINGTON - GIVEN the size of the US economy and the pre-eminent role of the dollar worldwide, the cut to Washington's credit rating ought to spill over throughout the global economy. But for the same...
View ArticleBuffett says US downgrade 'doesn't make sense'
WASHINGTON - INVESTING guru Warren Buffett criticised the Standard & Poor's downgrade of the long-term US credit rating, saying it 'doesn't make sense' and would have a limited impact on markets....
View ArticleS&P defends US downgrade as criticism mounts
WASHINGTON - STANDARD & Poor's stuck to its guns Saturday after a withering attack on its math skills and historical accuracy in the wake of its stunning first-ever downgrade of the US credit...
View ArticleGold Soars to Record Highs
Gold hit new highs in Asian trading late Monday as stock markets slumped and the dollar struggled. Gold futures jumped to $1,718 an ounce, a record high and up 4.2% from Friday’s closing price of...
View ArticleCrude dives to 8-month low on U.S. downgrade
U.S. crude oil futures slumped more than 6 percent to an eight-month low at the close on Monday, battered by a sell-off spurred by the downgrade of the U.S. credit rating.
View ArticleDow closes down 634 points after final plunge
The Dow Jones industrial average finished the day down 634.76 points Monday after a full-day sell-off accelerated in the final hour of trading as investors struggled to absorb Standard & Poor's...
View ArticleStocks tumble as Europe fears return
U.S. stocks fell sharply Wednesday, nearly wiping out the previous session's huge rally, as fears about Europe's ongoing debt crisis resurfaced. The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) was down 380...
View Article
