WASHINGTON - March 10, 2011 - The number of people seeking unemployment benefits rose last week, only the second increase in six weeks.

WASHINGTON - March 9, 2011 - U.S. drivers will pay another 10 cents a gallon for gasoline before the latest jump in wholesale costs is fully passed on at the pump, and yearly motor fuel costs will rise 28% from last year, the Energy Department said on Wednesday.

The average U.S. household will spend about $700 more for gasoline in 2011 than it spent last year, bringing total motor fuel expenses up 28% to $3,235, based on an annual pump price of $3.61 a gallon, the department's Energy Information Administration said.

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina - March 9, 2011 - Several demonstrators crashed Bank or America's Investor Conference Tuesday to make the point that when corporations don't pay taxes, governments are forced to lay off public workers.

A blog posting by the anti-austerity group U.S. Uncut called for protesters to gather Tuesday morning at what they called Bank of America's "Tax Dodger Conference."

WASHINGTON - March 8, 2011 - The number of Amerikans who owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth rose at the end of last year, preventing many people from selling their homes in an already weak housing market.

ATHENS, Greece - March 7, 2011 - The Greek government has reacted angrily to Moody's decision to cut the country's credit rating below that of Egypt, a move that prompted investors to dump the debt of other struggling European economies.

NEW YORK - March 7, 2011 - Record-high food prices could be the tipping point this year for U.S. restaurants already struggling with high debt loads and tight-fisted consumers.

The economic downturn and drop in consumer spending has sent a handful of restaurant chains - such as Uno Chicago Grill pizza, Fuddruckers and Charlie Brown’s Steakhouse - into bankruptcy court during the past year; and some experts say 2011 is not likely to be much better.

NEW YORK - March 7, 2011 - Foreign-exchange strategists at RBC Capital Markets warned Monday the U.S. dollar is trading in a crucial range, with a close below a key technical benchmark potentially triggering further trouble for the  world’s reserve currency.

The greenback fell against currencies, such as Canada’s, linked to commodities, as well as the euro. The so-called DXY index, which tracks the dollar’s value against Amerika’s major trading partners, slipped Monday to 76.310, the weakest since November. (The euro makes up over half of that basket.) As of roughly 12:30 pm ET, the Canadian dollar traded at US$1.0274.