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AP Business NewsBrief at 10:46 p.m. EST
(AP Online Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) GMAC loosens credit to make vehicles easier to buyNEW YORK (AP) _ A $5 billion government bailout aimed at reviving General Motors Corp.'s ability to make car and truck loans has dealers hopeful that cash-strapped consumers will return to their showrooms. GMAC Financial Services, the automaker's troubled financing arm, on Tuesday loosened its tight lending standards, which in recent months have made it more difficult for would-be car buyers to get loans. GMAC's move marks the first time that a financial institution has said it will use money from the $700 billion bank bailout to offer more affordable credit to consumers.
December consumer confidence drops to all-time lowNEW YORK (AP) _ The grim outlook for the economy was affirmed Tuesday by separate reports showing consumer confidence and housing prices have plummeted to all-time lows. Illustrating the depths of the recession, consumer confidence hit a more than 40-year low in December in the face of rising layoffs, while home prices in 10 major U.S. cities dropped in October by the sharpest amount in 21 years.
Wall Street gains as GMAC gets financingNEW YORK (AP) _ Wall Street staged a big advance in the next to last session of 2008 Tuesday after Washington's latest lifeline to the auto industry bolstered hopes that the government will do whatever is necessary to cut short the recession. Investors found solace in news that General Motors Corp.'s troubled financing arm received $5 billion of financing. The Treasury Department said late Monday it would provide the money to GMAC Financial Services LLC from the $700 billion bank rescue program.
Madoff liquidation trustee receives $28M for costsNEW YORK (AP) _ The financial whirlpool created by Bernard Madoff continued to churn Tuesday as the price tag of liquidating his old firm rose, and duped investors including the actors Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick struggled to accurately estimate how much they lost. A publicist for the celebrity couple confirmed that they, too, were among the unlikely victims of what Madoff, according to the FBI, has described as a giant Ponzi scheme. The spokesman, Allen Eichhorn, wouldn't say how much of their savings were gone.
Viacom threatens to pull MTV off Time Warner CableLOS ANGELES (AP) _ Media giant Viacom Inc. is threatening to pull MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon and 16 other channels from Time Warner Cable Inc. if a new carriage fee deal is not agreed upon by midnight Wednesday. If realized, the move could shut off popular shows like "The Colbert Report" and "SpongeBob SquarePants" to 13 million subscribers, said spokesman Alex Dudley, a vice president at Time Warner Cable, the nation's second-largest cable operator.
Judge rules against WaMu confidentiality requestWILMINGTON, Del. (AP) _ A federal bankruptcy judge on Tuesday denied a request by Washington Mutual Inc. to keep details of certain asset sales secret. WaMu, which filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in September, wants to sell certain equity holdings and interests in venture capital funds to generate value for the company and its creditors. The Seattle-based thrift was the biggest bank to collapse in U.S. history, with about $307 billion in assets.
Economic news drowns out geopolitics in oil marketCOLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) _ Oil prices fell Tuesday as consumer confidence in the U.S. hit an all-time low in December and home prices dropped sharply, with few signs that the real estate market has hit bottom. Crude prices had risen for the first time in a week Monday with the armed conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants entering a third day. Israel on Tuesday said it might suspend its Gaza offensive to give Hamas militants an opening to halt cross-border rocket fire.
SEC's enforcement accountant to leave next monthWASHINGTON (AP) _ The top accountant in the Securities and Exchange Commission's enforcement branch is leaving for a private sector job next month, in what could herald a wave of departures from the embattled agency. The SEC said Tuesday that Susan Markel, chief accountant in the agency's division of enforcement, is taking a job in the corporate investigations practice of AlixPartners LLP, a turnaround consulting firm.
Investors drop out of Colo. pipeline projectDENVER (AP) _ The credit crunch has prompted some investors to withdraw from construction of a natural gas pipeline in northwestern Colorado. Enterprise Products Partners and Quicksilver Gas Services have terminated plans for a 50 percent stake in TransCanada's $2 billion Pathfinder pipeline project. The 673-mile pipeline would run from Colorado to North Dakota where it would link to a major system in the Midwest.
Dow Chem. heads into 2009 trying to salvage dealNEW YORK (AP) _ A year-end surprise has left the nation's largest chemical company scrambling to salvage a deal it had hoped would make riding out a recession a little easier. Following the collapse of a $17.4 billion joint venture with a state-owned Kuwaiti company, Dow Chemical must weigh taking on more debt than it wanted, entering intense negotiations to restructure a buyout of rival Rohm & Haas, or both.
Copyright ? 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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