Online financial news

So much information and so many ideas come to us daily in the financial press. We’re able to fill up our trash basket in just minutes.

In The Financial Times, for example, Larry Summers recently offered a solution to America’s housing debt problem. And in The Herald Tribune our favorite comedian, Thomas L. Friedman, tells us about the next Internet revolution and what a wonderful world it will create.

Meanwhile, stocks appear to be on the march again. The Dow is up over 4% for the week. And oil is back over $90 per barrel.

Once again, ‘recovery’ hopes are building. The Europeans just have to sort out their debt mess. And Americans too!

And that should be easy. There are so many smart people on the job!

In Europe, Monsieur Sarkozy and Frau Merkel — not to mention an army of technicians, bankers and delusional incompetents — are finding ways to solve Europe’s debt crisis. How? By adding more leverage…debt…and confusion. To simplify,

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President Barack Obama on Saturday cited encouraging signs of an auto industry rebound as he promoted stronger financial rules that he said would help prevent a repeat of the crisis that pushed carmakers to the brink.

Senate Democrats have set a test vote Monday on legislation to tighten federal oversight of the financial sector.

The auto industry was one of the biggest casualties of a recession fueled by risky lending and speculative trading practices of major financial institutions. But after shedding 400,000 jobs in 2008, bailed-out U.S. automakers are rebounding.

“I knew this wasn’t a popular decision, but it was the right thing to do,” Obama said of the government’s intervention to help automakers.

General Motors Co. said this week it will repay $8.1 billion in U.S. and Canadian government loans five years ahead of schedule. Read more…

The U.S. is destined to endure a new economic crisis that sticks taxpayers with the bill unless Congress tightens oversight of the financial industry, President Barack Obama said Saturday.

The overhaul is the next major piece of legislation that Obama wants to sign into law this year, but solid GOP opposition in the Senate is jeopardizing that goal.

“Every day we don’t act, the same system that led to bailouts remains in place, with the exact same loopholes and the exact same liabilities,” Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address. “And if we don’t change what led to the crisis, we’ll doom ourselves to repeat it.

“Opposing reform will leave taxpayers on the hook if a crisis like this ever happens again,” the president said.

A proposal that Senate Democrats are readying for debate creates a mechanism for liquidating large financial companies to avoid a meltdown.

For the first time, the government would regulate derivatives, those financial instruments whose value depends on an underlying asset, such as mortgages or stocks. Read more…

This is a busy time of year for everyone and the last thing on your mind is probably taking the time to complete a financial check up. However, the end of the year is one of the most important times to review your financial activity for the year and make sure you’re ready to get 2010 off to a good start. Many people make a lot of poor financial decisions during the holidays and they have to spend the next several months digging their way out of the hole that they have created for themselves. Taking a look at where you stand in these four areas could lead to better financial decisions in the days and weeks to come.

Family: Most people spend a lot of time with their family this time of year and it’s a natural time to think about the planning you’ve done to help take care of your family members financially if you’re in a position to do so. The end

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