Stocks plunge as hopes for immediate bailout for auto industry fade.

Losses deepened as battered financial markets reflected sinking confidence in the world economy and evidence of falling fuel demand mounted.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced yesterday that they are temporarily suspending foreclosures and evictions during the holiday season in an effort to keep people from losing their homes.

General Motor's financial arm, GMAC Financial Services, applied to become a bank holding company today, a move that could allow it to grab a piece of the Treasury Department's $700 billion rescue package and give it access to the Federal Reserve's discount window to receive emergency loans.

AP - South Korean stocks fell for an eighth straight session Thursday, and the won dropped against the U.S. dollar to levels not seen in more than a decade, as a sell-off on Wall Street and worries about the world economy shook investors.

Reuters - A 6 percent fall in Asia pushed world stocks to their lowest in 5- years on Thursday, while oil fell below $53 and safe havens such as the yen gained on fears the global recession and a financial crisis will get uglier.

Reuters - Senators Levin, Bond, Voinovich, Stabenow reached an agreement on bipartisan auto aid agreement a senate democratic aide said on Thursday.

Reuters - Shares of General Motors and Ford Motor Co soared on Thursday after a Senate Democratic aide said senators had reached agreement on a bipartisan auto aid deal.

The financial system, which had recently shown glimmers of improvement, is unraveling again.

Reuters - Citigroup Inc lost more than one-quarter of its market value on growing worries over whether it has enough capital to withstand billions of dollars of potential losses and despite new support from its largest individual investor.

Reuters - The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose by a larger than expected 27,000 last week to their highest level in 16 years, Labor Department data showed on Thursday, as a harsh economic environment forces employers to cut back on hiring.

Reuters - Shares of General Motors Corp and Ford Motor Co jumped on Thursday, rebounding from multi-decade lows after U.S. senators reached a bipartisan agreement on a government bailout for the struggling U.S. automakers.

Dell?s third quarter results showed just how challenging a restructuring can be in the middle of a severe economic slowdown.

AP - The Treasury Department says it is prepared to buy assets from a troubled money market mutual fund, part of an effort to prevent any disruptions to already fragile financial markets.

With lawmakers weighing the possibility of allowing one of the nation's automakers to fail, some on Wall Street and in Detroit are arguing that the consequences of failure could reach far beyond the industry and into the broader economy.

The federal appeals court?s decision came after finding that the Interior Department had failed to conduct an environmental study before issuing the company?s drilling permit.

Paul Volcker, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve, spoke to baseball owners about the nation?s economy without specifically addressing how the league would be affected.

Stocks and crude oil prices took another tumble in early trading today as investors' recession concerns deepened and prospects dimmed for a bailout of the U.S. automobile industry.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov. 20 -- Argentina's Senate on Thursday night gave final approval to the government's plan to nationalize the private pension system in an attempt to protect retirement investments from the international financial crisis.

Lawmakers approved only a modest extension of jobless benefits this week, showing why lame-duck sessions often do not work.