AP - Gov. David Paterson said Wednesday he wants to freeze hiring and cut state spending by an additional 7 percent to shore up a state economy that his budget director said is officially in recession.

Reuters - Stocks rebounded on Tuesday, rising more than 2 percent on another sharp slide in oil prices and after Merrill Lynch's latest write-down and share sale hinted at a possible turning point in the credit crisis.

Reuters - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama met Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the U.S. economy and how to bolster it.

AP - Americans see a slice of sunlight for the economy, as a widely watched report Tuesday showed people are not as pessimistic about the future as they were a month ago.

Reuters - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama discussed the risk of further U.S. economic deterioration with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Tuesday and made clear his respect for the Fed's independence, the senator's spokesman said.

AP - Wall Street shot higher Tuesday, gaining back the previous session's sharp losses and then some, after a drop in oil prices and a rise in consumer confidence gave investors some hope for a letup in Americans' financial woes. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 266 points.

Reuters - Prices of U.S. single-family homes plunged at a record pace in May from a year earlier, with each of the 20 regions monitored showing annual declines for a second month, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case Shiller home price indexes reported on Tuesday.

Reuters - U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama will meet with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the U.S. economy and Obama's proposals to bolster it, a campaign aide said.

AFP - US consumer confidence showed slender gains in July but still reflected a "grim" assessment of economic conditions, the Conference Board reported Tuesday.

Reuters - Stocks rose more than 1 percent on Tuesday as a drop of over $3 in the price of oil and data showing a rise in consumer confidence reduced worry about inflation and consumer spending.

AP - Amid the gloom of higher gas and food prices and a slumping housing market, Americans appear to be looking for a bit of hope.

Reuters - U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama will meet with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the U.S. economy and how to bolster it, his campaign said.

Reuters - Consumer confidence halted a six-month slide in July, but barely climbed from its lowest level in more than a decade, while home prices continued their record decline in May.