GM issues six more safety recalls
General Motors announced six recalls on Wednesday, expanding beyond the ignition switch defects that have plagued the company, and bringing its total for the year to 60 recalls involving 29 million vehicles worldwide. The automaker is recalling more than 822,000 cars worldwide for a variety of issues, including problems with seats, air bags and turn signals, parts that may not have been welded together properly, and a loss of power steering. For much of this year, GM has been engulfed by a safety crisis set off by defective ignition switches in millions of older small cars that the automaker has linked to at least 13 deaths. Some of the cars in the latest recalls already have been recalled multiple times for other problems.
SEC to end $1 a share for some money funds
Regulators have voted by a narrow margin to end a longtime staple of the investment industry — the fixed $1 share price for money-market mutual funds — at least for some money funds used by big investors. The idea is to minimize the risk of a mass withdrawal from the funds during a financial panic. The Securities and Exchange Commission also is letting all money funds block withdrawals when their assets fall below certain levels or impose fees for withdrawals. The new rules were adopted on a 3-2 vote, culminating several years of regulatory haggling and false starts.
Oil prices rise as U.S. supplies fall
The price of oil rose after the government reported that U.S. oil supplies had dropped more than expected. The benchmark U.S. oil contract for September delivery gained 73 cents to $103.12 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for September delivery, a benchmark for international oil, rose 70 cents to $108.03 on the ICE Futures exchange in London. The Energy Department reported that U.S. oil supplies fell by 4 million barrels last week, a sharper decline than the 2.6 million barrels expected by analysts.
E.U. OKs Greek state rescues of top banks
The European Union has approved rescue plans for National Bank of Greece and Piraeus Bank, wrapping up a series of probes into Greek government efforts to prop up troubled lenders. The country was the nation worst hit by Europe's economic crisis, requiring two international bailouts. The European Commission acknowledged that the troubles faced by Piraeus Bank — the country's largest lender — and National Bank of Greece stemmed "primarily from the sovereign debt crisis and the related exceptionally protracted and deep recession."
Senate bill targets firms that move overseas
The U.S. Senate voted to advance a bill limiting tax breaks for U.S. companies that move operations overseas. Senators voted 93-7 to begin debating the bill, which would prevent companies from deducting expenses related to moving operations to a foreign country. The bill also would offer tax credits to companies that move operations to the U.S. from a foreign country. "It would end the absurd practice of American taxpayers bankrolling the outsourcing of their very own jobs," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
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