TIMOTHY GEITHNER

The U.S. economy grew in the third quarter for the first time in more than a year as government stimulus helped lift consumer spending and home building, fueling an unexpectedly strong advance.

The Obama administration's new proposal for tackling financial risk in the U.S. economy, unveiled just two days ago, came under attack on Thursday from all sides, with critics targeting its funding and scope.

The Obama administration made gains on Tuesday in its push for U.S. financial reform, unveiling a landmark bill to tackle systemic risk in the economy and winning congressional committee approval for a measure to expose hedge funds to more government scrutiny.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Tuesday told a packed room of Wall Street dealers and bankers they could not look America in the eye and argue that financial regulation is fine as it is.

The Obama administration within days will move to get tougher with large financial firms that are in trouble by urging Congress to let the government seize control, wipe out shareholders, boot management and restructure debts, an administration official said on Monday.

When it comes to borrowing trillions of dollars, it helps to have a golden reputation, a steady income stream, and plenty of rich, trusting friends.

Interviews with dozens of lobbyists, banking industry insiders, and high-level regulators suggests that the Fed incursion into excessive pay stems more from political expediency than financial concerns. This, many say, raises serious questions about the central bank's independence.

U.S. officials on Thursday took aim at generous executive pay packages, saying it was offensive that firms receiving substantial taxpayer aid paid their officers and other top employees so lavishly.

U.S. officials on Thursday took aim at generous executive pay packages, saying it was offensive that firms receiving substantial taxpayer aid paid their officers and other top employees so lavishly.

The Obama administration plans to order that top earners at firms that received billions of dollars in government bailouts will see cash payouts cut by an average of about 90 percent from last year, a source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

President Barack Obama will announce a package of initiatives on Wednesday to increase credit to small businesses, an administration official said on Tuesday.

The Obama administration on Monday launched a program to help the depressed U.S. housing market by effectively allowing state and local housing finance agencies to borrow from the U.S. Treasury.

Hedge-fund manager David Einhorn, who warned about Lehman Brothers' precarious finances before it collapsed, said on Monday he's betting on rising interest rates and holding gold as a hedge for what he described as unsound U.S. policies.

Real estate and banking industry trade groups urged the Obama administration on Monday to press to extend and expand a tax credit for first-time home buyers that they said is instrumental to stabilizing the fragile housing market.

Geithner's Deficit Warning; Earnings Still Key; Antitrust Toy Probe

The United States must live within its means once its economy recovers if it is to preserve global confidence in the U.S. dollar's status, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Friday.

The United States must live within its means once its economy recovers if it is to preserve global confidence in the U.S. dollar's status, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Friday.

The U.S. budget deficit hit a record $1.4 trillion in the just-ended fiscal year, the government said on Friday, as the deep recession and a series of bank rescues cut a gaping hole in public finances. The tally was $162 billion smaller than the White House had forecast in August, but it still amounted to 10 percent of total U.S. economic output, the most for any budget shortfall since World War Two.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Friday, as investors awaited key earnings reports from conglomerate General Electric and Bank of America .

Describing the proliferation of fraudulent mortgage rescue schemes as an epidemic on Sept. 17, the U.S. Treasury, Department of Justice, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the FTC announced they would work together to target investigations and increase their efficiency.

Congress will soon probe executive compensation at companies such as American International Group Inc and Bank of America Corp receiving significant taxpayer funds, the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform panel said on Wednesday.