Latest USA Headlines

All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.

U.S. Congressman Requests Disaster Assistance for Louisiana Fishermen

Apr 30 2010 // U.S. Congressman Charlie Melancon of Louisiana has urged federal administrators to direct disaster funding to Louisiana’s commercial and recreational fishermen as a result of the explosion and oil spill from the...

Gulf of Mexico Leak Grows, Oil Slick Near Shore

Apr 29 2010 // The U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday five times as much oil as previously estimated was leaking from a well beneath the site of a deadly drilling rig explosion as the slick threatened wide-scale coastal damage for four U.S....

Goldman Puts Berkshire’s Buffet in Tough Ethical Spot

Apr 29 2010 // Warren Buffett’s reputation as a stickler for good business ethics has put the billionaire in an awkward spot because of an investment in Goldman Sachs Group Inc.In Sept 2008, at the height of the financial crisis,...

U.S. Targets Crop Insurers’ Profits

Apr 29 2010 // The federal government wants to save taxpayers billions of dollars by reducing spending on crop insurance after years of big profits by insurers, but the industry claims the reductions could hurt rural areas.The U.S....

Federal Judge Awards $164K in Damages in Chinese Drywall Case

Apr 29 2010 // A federal judge in Louisiana has ordered a manufacturer of faulty drywall from China to pay more than $164,000 to a Louisiana family as result of damage to their home from the wallboard.The ruling is the second time in...

AIG Sale of Asian Unit AIA to Prudential Hits Snag

Apr 28 2010 // Prudential is facing the makings of a shareholder revolt over its $35.5 billion deal to buy AIA, raising the prospect the deal could fail and adding to pressure for a breakup of the British insurer...

Antigua ex-Financial Regulator Ordered Extradited in Stanford Case

Apr 27 2010 // Antigua and Barbuda’s former top financial regulator was ordered Monday to be extradited to the United States to face charges he assisted accused Texas financier Allen Stanford in an alleged $7 billion fraud, a...

Lockton Launches ‘Scope, Insurance’ for Surgery Outside of U.S.

Apr 27 2010 // The Lockton Companies (Singapore) Pte Ltd has launched an insurance product to cover the cost of medical complications for medical travelers receiving surgery abroad in collaboration with QBE International Ltd, the...

Financial Reform Bill Stumbles in U.S. Senate

Apr 27 2010 // The most sweeping overhaul of U.S. banking rules since the Great Depression stumbled in the Senate Monday as Republicans united to prevent action on the bill.The vote gives Republicans leverage to extract more concessions...

Federal Court Strikes Blow to Wal-Mart in Sex Discrimination Suit

Apr 27 2010 // A landmark sex-discrimination lawsuit against Wal-Mart Stores Inc. may proceed as a class-action case, a federal appeals court said, dealing the retailer a major blow and exposing it to billions of dollars of potential...

Survey: More U.S. Businesses Anticipate Payroll Growth

Apr 26 2010 // More U.S. companies, including those in the insurance industry, plan to increase their work force over the next six months, a survey showed on Monday.The National Association for Business Economics said its industry survey...

A.M. Best: U.S. P/C Industry Results Rebound

Apr 26 2010 // The U.S. property/casualty industry reported a strong fourth quarter topping off a solid year, according to rating analysts.Net income climbed to $31.1 billion in 2009, driven by improved underwriting results, the...

Financial Reform Hits First Hurdle in U.S. Senate

Apr 26 2010 // The most sweeping overhaul of U.S. financial regulation since the Great Depression appeared unlikely to clear its first hurdle in the U.S. Senate Monday as Republicans held out for a bipartisan deal.Even as Wall Street...

UK’s Brown Warns Banks of Compensation Claims

Apr 23 2010 // British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said any bank found guilty of wrongdoing could have to pay millions of dollars in compensation.Britain this week launched a probe into alleged fraud by Goldman Sachs after the United...

Obama Memo Triggers Confusion Over Legality of Pirate Ransoms

Apr 22 2010 // Shipping companies with U.S. interests don’t know if they are allowed to pay ransoms to Somali pirates anymore after President Obama declared them an “extraordinary threat,” even as pirates extended their...

Obama: U.S. Faces Another Financal Crisis If Lessons Aren’t Learned

Apr 22 2010 // U.S. President Barack Obama will tell Wall Street Thursday to accept a sweeping bill to overhaul financial regulations, warning of another crisis unless rules are tightened to rein in the industry’s risky...

Business Moves

Apr 19 2010 // The Hanover, Campania GroupMassachusetts-based insurer The Hanover has completed its acquisition of Virginia-based Campania Group, which provides professional and general liability solutions for durable medical equipment...

It Figures

Apr 19 2010 // 13% The latest report from the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) shows that motorcycle thefts declined by 13 percent in 2009, continuing a downward trend in thefts. A total of 56,093 motorcycles were reported stolen...

Federal Judge Awards $2.6M in Chinese Drywall Case

Apr 19 2010 // A federal judge in New Orleans has awarded seven plaintiffs from Virginia more than $2.6 million in a consolidated case involving damage to their homes as a result of the installation of substandard drywall from China.In...

Insurer’s Study Shows U.S. Refineries Plagued by Deadly Accidents

Apr 19 2010 // On the heels of a Tesoro refinery blast in Washington that killed five people, an insurance company report obtained by The Associated Press noted that U.S. oil refineries have an ongoing problem with accidents that turn...