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Commercial Bankruptcies Jumped in March – WSJ.com The total number of companies filing for bankruptcy in the U.S. jumped by more than 20% in March over the previous month, as business failures in the first quarter outpaced last year's total. The total number of commercial bankruptcy filings hit 8,208 in March, a sharp rise from … Read more

U.S. schools in ‘category 5’ budget crisis – Education- msnbc.com Now, many states have nearly exhausted their windfalls from the federal economic stimulus plan, and with falling housing values shrinking property tax revenue — the largest source of public school funding — the question for state and local officials planning budgets for the next school … Read more

Yuan rise would be disastrous: China export body | Reuters A rise in the yuan would be a disaster for labor-intensive Chinese exporters, a semi-official trade group said on Thursday, as frictions grow with the U.S. and other Western powers over Beijing's stable currency policy. (tags: China economy currency) Zvi Bodie on Financial Planners and … Read more

Japan's New Government Is Frustrated by Strong Yen – WSJ.com Japan's stubbornly strong currency is becoming a source of frustration for the country's new administration, and a source of confusion for many traders. (tags: yen currency Japan economy) Senators back bill to pressure China on currency | PBS A group of 14 U.S. senators unveiled … Read more

Loans Going Bad Faster Than the Fixes – CNBC The good news is the pace of loan deterioration is slowing. The bad news is we are still seeing record high delinquencies, and new delinquencies are outpacing loss mitigation efforts. (tags: mortgage foreclosure) Why Applied Materials Should Curb its Solar Plans : Greentech Media In the past few … Read more

Pound Bears Bet More Than When George Soros Beat BOE (Update2) – BusinessWeek Futures traders are more bearish than ever on sterling amid concern that the currency’s worst annual start in 13 years will continue as the U.K.’s budget deficit approaches the Greek shortfall that roiled the euro. Wagers on the pound weakening against the … Read more

Middle Class Money Angst Still Apparent in Data In all, the latest Fed Flow of Funds data suggest that, to the extent middle class Americans' finances are improving, it's because their liabilities are being reduced by default. The gains in asset values are being concentrated by those so-called households with the ways and means to … Read more

Extended Interview – George Papaconstantinou, Greece's Finance Minister | Nightly Business Report | PBS In tonight's program, NBR's Darren Gersh talks with George Papaconstantinou, Greece's Minister of Finance, about his nation's debt crisis. Mr. Papaconstantinou talks about the role speculators have played in destabilizing the Greek economy, and he also talks about whether the crisis … Read more

Europe bars Wall Street banks from government bond sales | Business | guardian.co.uk European countries are blocking Wall Street banks from lucrative deals to sell government debt worth hundreds of billions of euros in retaliation for their role in the credit crunch. (tags: Europe debt govt_spending GoldmanSachs) Governor Chris Christie’s Remarks to Mayors Chris Christie … Read more

Talk of China giving up on dollar is nonsense: banker | Reuters Li Ruogu, chairman of Export-Import Bank of China, a lender tasked with supporting the country's foreign investments, said in a group interview that a collapse in the dollar's value would damage Chinese interests. China should focus instead on trying to stabilize the dollar … Read more