Oil Hits $80 a Barrel for First Time...
DOLLAR DECLINES TO RECORD LOW AGAINST THE EURO...
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601009&sid=a8HmfchzkP2Q&refer=bond ....Dollar May Fall as $700 Billion of Debt Matures
Senate panel okays $850 billion debt increase
The Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday approved an $850 billion increase in U.S. borrowing authority to $9.815 trillion in order to avoid a default as the government nears its credit limit of $8.965 trillion.
The committee approved the bill on a voice vote and it clears the way for the full Senate to take action most likely by early October. As of last Friday, the federal debt stood at $8.923 trillion and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has been urging Congress to act quickly to avoid unnerving financial markets that are already jittery over rising mortgage foreclosures.
It will be the fifth increase in the U.S. credit limit since President George W. Bush took office in 2001 when the U.S. debt stood at $5.6 trillion.
Mortgage Lender's Bankruptcy May Threaten Thousands of Homeowners -
Thousands of homeowners face an "imminent risk" of losing their homes because of clashes between American Home Mortgage Investment Corp. and its former financial backers, according to Freddie Mac, a government-chartered housing financier.
In documents filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., Freddie Mac said it seized $7 million that homeowners sent to American Home to cover principal and interest payments, property taxes and insurance just before the company's Aug. 6 collapse. American Home quit making payments to tax authorities and insurance companies Aug. 24.
Freddie Mac said 4,547 loans valued at nearly $797 million are at stake. It said it doesn't have the loan files necessary to pay insurance premiums and property taxes on them, however.
