credit

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Americans Tighten Belts for New Frugal Age

(Newser) - The credit crisis may force Americans to do something truly drastic: live frugally. Benjamin Franklin-style penny-pinching once defined America, but thrift has gone decidedly out of style in recent times, BusinessWeek reports. "I can't help the economy," says one recent convert to the new frugality. "I've...

Ford CFO Says He'll Step Down
Ford CFO
Says He'll
Step Down

Ford CFO Says He'll Step Down

Longtime exec retires after grabbing timely loan ahead of crisis

(Newser) - Ford CFO Don Leclair will retire at the end of the month after 32 years with the company, the struggling automaker said today. Leclair has drawn praise for snagging $25 billion in loans for the company before the credit markets dried up, a move that may ensure Ford’s survival...

Credit Chill Spreads to Russia
 Credit Chill Spreads to Russia 

Credit Chill Spreads to Russia

Georgian war spooked foreign investment, destabilized economy

(Newser) - The credit crisis has officially reached Russia, revealing just how fragile the Russian economy is, BusinessWeek reports. Stocks fell so much this week that the government today suspended both exchanges to stem further loss. But the country's reliance on foreign cash—disappearing as investors flee—is bound to affect more...

Can Their $700B Rescue Plan Do the Trick?
Can Their $700B Rescue
Plan Do the Trick?
ANALYSIS

Can Their $700B Rescue Plan Do the Trick?

Experts say action is needed, but doubt if it will be enough

(Newser) - Forget white and blue: Uncle Sam is all red these days after swallowing hundreds of billions in bad mortgages and coughing up billions more to save strapped businesses. As the Feds strategize a solution to the mess, experts are unsure if the plan will work and how much it’ll...

Fed Extends Emergency Loan Program for Wall Street

Bernanke offers several options for cash-strapped firms

(Newser) - The Federal Reserve today extended its emergency borrowing program for Wall Street firms through Jan. 30. Originally the program, through which investment houses can tap the central bank for a quick source of cash, was supposed to last until mid-September. Another program, where banks can temporarily swap more risky investments...

Squeezed Banks Slash Biz Loans
Squeezed
Banks Slash
Biz Loans

Squeezed Banks Slash Biz Loans

Real-estate fallout dries up credit stream

(Newser) - Reeling from real-estate losses, banks are turning off the credit spigot to loan-seeking businesses, the New York Times reports. The loan reduction means more bad news down the line as money-starved companies begin to cut workers. Banks cut credit nearly 3% over the past year, the most since 2001, according...

Merrill Posts $4.65B Loss in Dismal 2nd Quarter

Third biggest American firm posts dismal second quarter

(Newser) - Merrill Lynch posted a second-quarter loss of $4.65 billion late yesterday, more than twice the second-quarter loss analysts had expected and one of the worst in the brokerage's history. The firm took a hit of $9.7 billion in credit-market writedowns, reports Bloomberg, on top of some $30 billion...

SUV Credit Crunch Rolls Over Ford
SUV Credit Crunch
Rolls Over Ford

SUV Credit Crunch Rolls Over Ford

Sinking value of big vehicles crashes auto firm's credit wing

(Newser) - Ford's plans to get back in the black are being forced off the road by woes at its lending arm, the Wall Street Journal reports. The auto giant made a lot of cut-rate loans on trucks and SUVs in recent  years and has been unable to recoup losses on bad...

Airlines Forced to Front Cash for Fuel

Can't afford to pay in advance for fuel

(Newser) - Cash-strapped airlines are now being pressured to pay millions of dollars in advance for aviation fuel, reports the Times of London. Mandatory prepayment for fuel has become common in the US and is now moving to Europe as crude oil prices continue to rise and the solvency of the industry...

7 Ways to Raise Your Credit Score

Simple tips to boost that murky rating

(Newser) - Credit scores are key if you're getting a new cell phone, new home, new car—even a new job. The Today Show offers 7 simple steps to give your score a boost:
  1. Fix errors on your reports: A mistake on one report can sink a score.
  2. Be timely: Payment history
...

Americans Drive Cycle of Auto Debt
Americans
Drive Cycle
of Auto Debt

Americans Drive Cycle of Auto Debt

New cars tempt buyers into larger, longer loans that outlast the vehicle

(Newser) - More and more Americans are entering a cycle of larger, longer, and far riskier auto loans, raising the possibility of a debt crisis similar to the one that has hit the housing market. The Los Angeles Times explores the increasing trend of trading in a used car for a new...

Auto-Loan Delinquencies Rise as Stress Spreads

Lenders are tightening credit, raising rates as delinquencies rise

(Newser) - Consumer auto loans are beginning to show the strain of the subprime collapse, with delinquencies among top-rated borrowers from 2006 rising 55%, to 4.5%, in September. That's the largest month-to-month increase in delinquencies in nearly a decade, the Wall Street Journal reports. Delinquencies among less credit-worthy consumers rose to...

Goldman Sees $2T Credit Shortfall, Major Slowdown

Nobel winner, investment firm warn of growing risk

(Newser) - The subprime mortgage crisis that has cost financial companies $400 billion and triggered what one banker is calling the worst housing market since the Great Depression will force a $2 trillion credit squeeze that could set off a “substantial recession” in the US, reports Bloomberg. Goldman Sachs said the...

Wall Street Watching Fed's High Wire Act

Rate cut expected in unusually tough decision this week

(Newser) - All eyes are on the Fed this week, with Wall Street expecting a quarter-point rate cut when the group meets Tuesday and Wednesday. But the decision is an usually tough one, the AP reports, with the tight rope between controlling inflation and keeping markets fluid more precarious than it has...

Contrite Jobs Offers $100 iPhone Credit

So sorry he dismissed price-cut complaints from first buyers

(Newser) - It didn’t take Apple CEO Steve Jobs long to reverse his dismissal of complaints about the new iPhone discount from the first consumers to buy the gadget. He apologized and  instituted a $100 credit for those who don't fall under the 14-day refund period. Jobs had told early buyers...

Smaller Lenders Feel the Credit Squeeze

Boutique banks on the edge as liquidity crisis wears on

(Newser) - As the subprime fallout continues and the credit squeeze tightens, thousands of smaller-scale mortgage banks find themselves in dire straits. The Wall Street Journal reports that small- and medium-sized lenders, even those with excellent credit quality, are suspending funding and laying off employees, which leaves giant corporations to grab more...

Stories 21 - 36 | << Prev