Obama presses Congress to pass aid to homeowners (Reuters) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Sat, 04 Feb 2012 11:02:11 GMT Reuters - President Barack Obama on Saturday pressed lawmakers to pass his proposal to provide up to $10 billion in aid to struggling homeowners, saying a failure to address the housing crisis would put the rest of the economy at risk.

Hiring surges in January; jobless rate at 8.3 pct. (AP) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Sat, 04 Feb 2012 04:51:09 GMT In this Jan. 30, 2012, UPS Store employee, Candy Mojica, weighs packages before shipping at The UPS Store in the Lake Balboa area of Los Angeles. The unemployment rate fell for the fifth straight month after a surge of January hiring, a promising shift in the nation's outlook for job growth. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Obama pushes for veterans jobs programs (AP) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Sat, 04 Feb 2012 02:19:59 GMT AP - In an effort to cut the unemployment rate among veterans, President Barack Obama is calling for a new conservation program that would put veterans to work rebuilding trails, roads and levees on public lands.

Unemployment falls sharply in US, rises in Europe (AP) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Fri, 03 Feb 2012 22:40:49 GMT AP - Unemployment falls sharply in US, rises in Europe

Jobless rate at 3-year low as payrolls surge (Reuters) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Fri, 03 Feb 2012 22:14:26 GMT Reuters - The United States created jobs at the fastest pace in nine months in January and the unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped to a near three-year low, giving a boost to President Barack Obama.

California to borrow internally to raise cash (Reuters) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Fri, 03 Feb 2012 22:06:40 GMT Reuters - California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill on Friday allowing the state government to borrow from internal funds to build up its cash, which the controller earlier this week said was quickly dwindling.

A sample of companies that are hiring, at a glance (AP) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:56:37 GMT AP - Employers across a range of industries have stepped up hiring. The economy gained 243,000 jobs in January, the most since last April. The hiring spree helped lower the unemployment rate for a fifth straight month, to 8.3 percent.

Obama plan would hire vets as cops, firefighters (Reuters) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:19:26 GMT Reuters - President Barack Obama on Friday announced measures to hire Iraq and Afghanistan veterans to restore national parks and work as police and firefighters in a bid to cut veterans' above-average unemployment rate.

Oil prices rise after drop in US hiring expands (AP) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:56:30 GMT Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qassemi, speaks with media in his press conference in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012. Iran's oil minister repeated claims that an EU oil embargo will not cripple Iran's economy, claiming Saturday that the country already has identified new customers to replace the loss in European sales that accounted for about 18 percent of Iran's exports. Rostam Qassemi also reinforced Iran's warning to Saudi Arabia and other fellow OPEC members against boosting production to offset any potential drop in Tehran's crude exports, saying the cartel should not be used as a political weapon against a member state. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Unemployment rate hinges on more than job gains (AP) US Economy News - Yahoo! News - Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:50:21 GMT AP - For most people, the 8.3 percent unemployment rate is the most visible sign of the economy's health. The rate's every movement is closely watched, especially in an election year.