ROCHESTER, New York - October 12, 2010 - Big U.S. cities could be squeezed by unfunded public pensions as they and counties face a $574 billion funding gap, a study to be released on Tuesday shows.

The gap at the municipal level would be in addition to $3 trillion in unfunded liabilities already estimated for state-run pensions, according to research from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and the University of Rochester.

LONDON, England - October 12, 2010 - Gold rose back towards $1,350 an ounce in Europe on Monday as the dollar languished, with confidence in the U.S. currency undermined by expectations the Federal Reserve will persist with a loose monetary policy.

LONDON, England - October 11, 2010 - A Depression may have been averted, but nothing has been fixed. This is the depressingly downbeat message that came across loud and clear from last weekend's annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund.

The destructive trade and capital imbalances of the pre-crisis era are back, banking reform appears stuck in paralysing discord, public debt in many advanced economies remains firmly set on the road to ruin, and the spirit of international cooperation that saw nations come together to fight the crisis has largely disappeared.

PORTLAND, Oregon - October 11, 2010 - It's crunch-time for many municipalities across the United States, but for one county in Oregon, that means a little more than in most.

The district attorney in Multnomah County, the state's most populous area with over 710,000 residents, announced recently that it can no longer prosecute dozens of crimes thanks to an ever-shrinking budget.

DENVER, Colorado - October 11, 2010 - Prospects for the U.S. economy are dimming, as the waning impact of government stimulus slows growth and high debt inhibits consumer spending, economists said in a report on Monday.

LONDON, England - October 11, 2010 - Bank of America last week halted foreclosures across the country amid allegations that homes are being seized based on data that has not been properly checked and moved too quickly through the process. JPMorgan Chase and Ally Financial have suspended foreclosures in 23 states to address similar allegations.

NEW YORK - October 10, 2010 - States are at the center of the unemployment crisis, and that's because many have serious debt problems, impeding their ability to keep workers employed.