AP - Construction spending edged up slightly in November as a continued steep slump in housing was offset by record spending on government and business projects.

AP - Orders to U.S. factories jumped in November by the largest amount in four months, but a key gauge of business investment fell for a second straight month, raising new worries about the strength of manufacturing.

Reuters - The U.S. unemployment rate likely hit its highest in more than a year in December, evidence of the rising difficulties Americans face finding a job, according to economists polled by Reuters.

Reuters - Electronics makers considering the strain on the U.S. economy are hoping consumers will cut other expenses first, but many see some worrying signs ahead.

Reuters - Pending sales of existing homes fell 2.6 percent in November from an October level that was revised sharply upwards and sales should hold steady over the next few months, a real estate trade group said Tuesday.

Reuters - Goldman Sachs on Wednesday said it expects the U.S. economy to drop into recession this year, prompting the Federal Reserve to slash benchmark lending rates to 2.5 percent by the third quarter.

AP - The number of newly laid off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week although the decline was not viewed as evidence of an improving job market.

Reuters - Further U.S. interest rate cuts may be in the offing and money market rates easing but news from the world's major banks on Friday gave no indication that the global credit crisis is abating.

Reuters - China has less scope than before to raise interest rates and banks' required reserves, making it very tough for policy makers to steer the economy to a soft landing, Vice Finance Minister Li Yong said on Sunday.

AFP - With recession fears looming large in the US presidential election, Democrat Hillary Clinton is offering a plan to rescue the US economy and woo voters worried about their pocketbooks.

AP - The German economy grew by a solid 2.5 percent last year, helped by strong exports, but a downbeat survey of investor confidence pointed to clouds on the horizon for Europe's biggest economy.

FT.com - Alarm about the state of the US economy amid signs that American consumers are starting to cut back on spending sent shares tumbling across Asia on Wednesday. Bank shares suffered after Citigroup (NYSE:C) and Merrill Lynch said they need $21.1bn of fresh capital, while technology stocks sagged on news Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) failed to hit its sales targets.

AFP - The dollar rebounded from recent lows Thursday as upcoming testimony by the Federal Reserve chief and better than expected data offered a glimmer of hope on the troubled US economy, dealers said.

AFP - Volatile trade continued to dog world stock markets on Friday, with panic-selling seen early in Asia before investors recovered their nerve on hopes a fiscal stimulus package would help the US economy avoid recession.

FT.com - Energy and base metals prices fell on Monday, on worries that the fiscal stimulus package proposed by US president George W Bush will not be enough to stop the US economy falling into recession.

AFP - Leading business economists are growing more pessimistic about the health of the US economy, but are more upbeat about their own company's prospects, according to a survey released Tuesday.

Reuters - Applications for home mortgages jumped for a third consecutive week as plunging interest rates encouraged more homeowners to seek refinancings, an industry group said on Wednesday.

Reuters - China grew 11.4 percent in 2007, the fastest pace in 13 years, but is headed for a modest slowdown this year as global demand weakens and credit curbs to cap inflation ripple through the economy.

AP - South Korea's economic growth accelerated in the fourth quarter on strength in exports and manufacturing, the Bank of Korea said Friday, with economists expressing optimism the country can weather a possible global slowdown.

Reuters - The Senate should quickly approve a $150 billion proposal to boost the sagging economy and resist the urge to add new benefits to the package, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said on Sunday.

Reuters - Many investors in derivatives are now hunting the best way to go short on credit based on the expectation that corporate defaults will rise this year.

AP - Consumer confidence fell sharply in January on worries over deteriorating business conditions and a weakening job market, a business research group said Tuesday.

Reuters - The likelihood of the United States slipping into recession is at least 50 percent, former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan was quoted as saying on Wednesday, in an interview with a German newspaper.

AFP - The US Federal Reserve has stepped up its campaign to head off recession with another half-point rate cut as part of an aggressive move to avert a downward economic spiral, analysts say.