Latest USA Headlines

All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Farm, Insurance Loss Estimates from Florida Freeze Still Weeks Away

Feb 2 2010 // It will still be weeks, into March and April, before the full extent of crop damage and insurance payments from Florida’s recent extended freeze will be known. While Florida’s citrus industry has been hard hit,...

AIG Filing Casts Doubt on ‘Limited Exposure’ Claim

Feb 1 2010 // A controversial regulatory filing detailing the federal bailout of American International Group Inc. could put the spotlight back on the former executive who headed the division most responsible for the insurer’s...

Trade Ministers at Davos Express Pessimism on Reaching WTO Accord

Feb 1 2010 // Trade ministers expressed gloom on Saturday, January 30, about the prospects of concluding stalled global trade liberalization talks this year, with many blaming the United States for foot-dragging. Ministers from about 20...

Congress to Probe Toyota Recalls

Jan 29 2010 // Congressional investigators Thursday sought documents from Toyota Motor Corp and U.S. safety regulators about a pair of safety recalls the automaker was racing to address. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry...

Liberty International Underwriters Restructures Specialty Casualty Unit

Jan 28 2010 // Liberty International Underwriters (LIU), a division of Liberty Mutual Group, restructured its U.S. Specialty Casualty unit. The following organizational changes are effective immediately: Carl Pursiano has been named...

Lawmakers Turn Up Heat on Treasury Chief Geithner Over AIG

Jan 28 2010 // U.S. lawmakers challenged Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner’s credibility on Wednesday after he said he was not involved in a decision by bailed-out insurer AIG to withhold details about $62 billion paid to...

Obama Job Drive Earns Business Plaudits at Davos

Jan 28 2010 // Wall Street executives welcomed U.S. President Barack Obama’s plan to create jobs and a softening of his attack on banks, but questioned on Thursday whether proposals in his State of the Union address would become...

U.S. Treasury Investigator Says French Regulator Was Open to AIG Talks

Jan 27 2010 // An overseer for the U.S. bailout program said Tuesday that France’s banking regulator was open to further negotiations over possible concessions on payments from bailed out insurer AIG, according to prepared...

Treasury Chiefs Paulson, Geithner Defend AIG Bailout

Jan 27 2010 // Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson staunchly defended the decision to rescue troubled insurer American International Group Inc. in 2008 and said he and others involved acted properly. In testimony prepared for a...

Lloyd’s Ordered to Pay Alleged Swindler Stanford’s Defense Costs

Jan 27 2010 // A U.S. federal judge ordered insurer Lloyd’s of London Tuesday to pay for alleged swindler Allen Stanford’s defense. Stanford and three other defendants sued the insurer after Lloyd’s stopped providing...

U.S. Judge Dismisses Claims Against Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s

Jan 27 2010 // In a victory for ratings agencies, a U.S. judge Tuesday dismissed claims against Moody’s Corp. and McGraw-Hill’s Standard & Poor’s in litigation over nearly $100 billion of Lehman Brothers Holdings...

Treasury Secretary Geithner Denies Role in AIG Disclosure

Jan 27 2010 // U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner flatly denied any role in counseling American International Group Inc. to keep quiet about payments it made to leading banks during a 2008 rescue of the stricken insurer. Geithner...

Davos Report: Business Leaders Warn Regulations May Crimp Recovery

Jan 27 2010 // Global business leaders warned Western governments on Wednesday that a populist crackdown on the financial industry could crimp a fragile recovery from the worst recession since the 1930s. The worried response to U.S....

Kingsway to Sell Jevco; Best Says Lincoln Still Weighs

Jan 27 2010 // Toronto-based Kingsway Financial Services announced today that it has entered into a definitive purchase agreement with The Westaim Corporation to sell “all of the issued and outstanding shares of Jevco Insurance...

U.S. Businesses Face Increasing Threats From Chinese Cyber Attacks

Jan 27 2010 // U.S. businesses and government agencies are facing increasing risks of potential cyber attacks from China, according to a recent report. And IT departments that react defensively to such attacks may not be doing enough to...

U.S. Bans Texting by Drivers of Large Trucks, Buses

Jan 26 2010 // The U.S. government Tuesday banned hand-held “texting” by drivers of large commercial trucks and buses to avoid the danger of distracted driving. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a statement the...

Bailout Watchdog Launches Probes of N.Y. Fed’s Disclosure on AIG

Jan 26 2010 // A U.S. bailout watchdog has launched two new investigations into the New York Federal Reserve Bank’s actions on insurer AIG’s disclosure of payments to banks after its 2008 rescue, excerpts of prepared...

AIG Asks Financial Product Employees to Take Retention Pay Cut

Jan 26 2010 // American International Group Inc. has given employees of its Financial Products unit until Tuesday to accept a cut in money owed them under a retention plan in return for an earlier payout, according to proposals obtained...

SEC Considered National Security Status for AIG Bailout Details

Jan 25 2010 // U.S. securities regulators originally treated the New York Federal Reserve’s bid to keep secret many of the details of the American International Group bailout like a request to protect matters of national security,...

Counties with Levees Are Some of the Nation’s Most Economically Sound, Report Says

Jan 25 2010 // Hundreds of levees around the United States protect vulnerable areas and tens of millions of people from potentially devastating floods. Yet hardly anyone gives them a second thought until one is breached. The most glaring...