GEORGE W. BUSH

A rise in U.S. consumer confidence to its highest in six months and a much bigger-than-expected contraction in the country's trade deficit pointed to a firmer economic recovery on Friday.

The United States recorded a larger-than-expected $150 billion budget gap last month, the largest shortfall for any November, Treasury Department data showed on Friday.

A rise in U.S. consumer confidence to its highest in six months and a much bigger-than-expected contraction in the country's trade deficit pointed to a firmer economic recovery on Friday.

The United States recorded a larger-than-expected $150 billion budget gap last month, the largest shortfall for any November, Treasury Department data showed on Friday.

Citigroup Inc appointed on Thursday U.S. president Barack Obama's former budget director as a global banking vice chairman.

Senate Republicans delivered a serious setback to the community of Ground Zero responders and their families today by blocking the Zadroga bill from coming to a vote.

Futures on major U.S. stock indices point to higher opening after the Department of Labor reported that weekly jobless claims declined last week.

Futures on major U.S. indices point to higher opening on Thursday as better-than-expected Japanese economic growth boosted sentiment.

Stocks crept higher in a choppy trading session as traders likely had more time to digest the implications of the extension of George W. Bush’s tax cuts for two years, as well as a renewal of unemployment insurance for long-term jobless for thirteen months.

Longer-term, the potential impact of the tax cuts upon the stock market and economy remain rather fuzzy, given the multitude of other issues facing investors, including perpetually high unemployment in the U.S., a seemingly never-ending sovereign debt crisis in Europe and constant friction with China over trade and currency.

A moderate stock rally fueled by a compromise between President Obama and Republicans on tax extensions and unemployment benefits petered out in late-session trading, resulting in a narrowly mixed results for major equity indices.

Investors who are worried about the health of the stock market might take some solace from the evidence that the U.S. equities have performed exceptionally well during the third year of a presidential term (Barack Obama enters the third year of his administration in January 2011).

The American people have spoken!By means of the mid-term elections the American people have sent a mandate to the American Congress. The message could not be clearer.

A framework for a possible deal between the White House and congressional leaders to extend expiring tax cuts for millions of Americans is slowly being put together behind closed doors, aides said on Friday.

Citigroup Inc said Carlos Gutierrez, former Commerce Secretary under President George W. Bush, will join the bank as vice chairman for its institutional clients group, the bank said on Friday.

The poor jobs data will push Congress to extend both the unemployment insurance benefits and all of the Bush tax cuts, according to Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial.

The Senate will vote on two Democratic options to extend some Bush-era tax cuts on Saturday, its Democratic leader said, measures likely to fail but highlight deep ideological divisions between the parties.

The House of Representatives, in the waning days of Democratic control, passed an extension on Thursday of Bush-era tax cuts for the lower and middle classes in a symbolic vote that would let tax cuts for the wealthiest expire.

Futures on major U.S. indices extended earlier gains on Wednesday after ADP reported that private-sector employment recorded the largest gain in three years in November.

Futures on major U.S. stock indices point to higher opening on Wednesday as better-than-expected manufacturing reports from China and Europe buoyed sentiment.

Futures on major U.S. stock indices point to higher opening on Wednesday, the first trading day of December, ahead of a wave of economic data including ADP national employment report.