Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke says that the economy is about to start growing again, although he cautioned it will be a slow recovery with continued high unemployment in the near term.

Speaking at an annual symposium in Jackson Hole, WY, Bernanke echoed a statement made by the Fed earlier this month, saying that "economic activity appears to be leveling out, both in the United States and abroad."

Bernanke went a step further though, indicating that "prospects for a return to growth in the near term appear good."

But the central bank chief warned that problems remain in financial markets around the globe, and that with banks facing "substantial" additional losses ahead, businesses and consumers will continue to have trouble accessing credit.

Home sales spike

Sales of previously-owned homes, the biggest portion of the housing market, soared more than 7% in July - the largest monthly increase in 10 years.

The National Association of Realtors says home sales rose 7.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.24 million last month, from a pace of 4.89 million in June. That’s the fourth-straight monthly increase and the highest level of sales since August 2007.

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Exxon Mobil is paying the price for its pollution.

Terry Frieden
CNN Justice Producer

Oil giant Exxon Mobil Corporation has pled guilty and will pay $600,000 in fines for the deaths of 85 protected migratory birds in the firm's wastewater ponds in five states.

Waterfowl, hawks and owls protected under an international treaty were killed after landing in open uncovered pools where they were coated with or ingested fatal doses of hydrocarbons, federal officials said.

The facilities are in Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.

"This is a great win for the environment," Acting Assistant Attorney General John Cruden told reporters in a telephone news conference.

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Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

Washington may be focused on the Sotomayor confirmation hearings, but Wall Street is prepping for earnings from the nation’s biggest banks.

Among the financial institutions reporting this week are Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Bank of America and Citigroup. Other big names like Johnson & Johnson, IBM, General Electric and Intel also report this week.

Traders are buzzing about Goldman Sachs in particular, which recently paid back its share of government bailout money. Analysts are predicting the bank earned a profit of more than $2 billion in the March-June period, due to its trading prowess across world markets.

If they’re right, Goldman’s rivals will once again be left to wonder exactly how the bank, long the envy of Wall Street, could have rebounded so dramatically only months after the nation’s financial industry was shaken to its core.

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Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

President Barack Obama this week will propose the most sweeping reorganization of financial-market supervision since the 1930s, a revamp that would touch nearly every corner of banking from how mortgages are underwritten to the way exotic financial instruments are traded.

In an Op-Ed piece published in today's Washington Post, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and the Director of the National Economic Council, Lawrence Summers, said the proposal would grant the Federal Reserve increased power in the oversight and management of the largest financial companies in the market.

It would also create an agency like the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., to oversee consumer-oriented financial products.

The President is expected to officially unveil the specific details of the proposal on Wednesday.

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Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

Gasoline prices rose 2.4-cents to $2.572 overnight, the 37th straight increase.

In the last 37 days, the average price of gas has increased 52.4 cents, or 25%.

Prices are still below the all-time high of $4.114 that AAA reported on July 17, 2008, but the seemingly relentless march back toward $3 a gallon gas is starting to make drivers nervous.

The highest gas prices are in Hawaii ($2.856), while the highest prices in the contiguous U.S. are in Michigan ($2.840). The cheapest gas prices are in South Carolina ($2.375).

Crude oil spikes

Crude oil prices are rising above $68, boosted by forecasts of higher oil prices from Goldman Sachs.

Goldman raised its end of 2009 oil price forecast to $85 a barrel from $65 and introduced a new end of 2010 forecast of $95.

The all-time for high for crude was $147.27 a barrel, hit back in July 2008.

Ongoing claims for jobless benefits decline

We’ve got a break today in a key measure of the jobs picture. The number of people on the unemployment insurance rolls fell slightly last week for the first time since January, while the tally of new jobless claims also dipped.

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Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

Big developments today for two of Detroit’s Big Three.

General Motors says it’s fallen far short of the bondholder support it needed for its proposed debt-for-stock offer, virtually guaranteeing that the nation's largest automaker will be forced to file for bankruptcy court protection within the next five days.

And in a sign that a bankruptcy filing could come as early as Friday, GM moved up the pay date for its employees this week.

Hourly employees represented by the UAW were paid today and salaried employees will be paid on Thursday. Both normally would have been paid on Friday.

Chrysler in court

It’s is judgment day for Chrysler and hundreds of auto dealers. A federal judge in Chrysler’s Chapter 11 case could decide today whether to give the automaker permission to sell the bulk of its assets to a group headed by Italy's Fiat in the hope of saving itself from liquidation.

Lawyers for Chrysler say the Fiat deal is the company's only hope to avoid being sold off in pieces, but more than 300 objections to the sale have been filed by the carmaker's dealers, bondholders and former employees.

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As CNN prepares to mark President Obama’s first 100 days in office, we'll also have a detailed look at his wide-ranging initiatives intended to stem the economic downturn and financial crisis.

Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

Government regulators have reportedly told Bank of America and Citigroup that both banks need to increase their capital reserves based on preliminary "stress test" results.

The capital shortfall at Bank of America could amount to billions of dollars, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the situation.

Executives at both banks are said to be objecting to the preliminary findings, which emerged from the government's scrutiny of 19 large financial institutions. The two banks are reportedly planning to respond with detailed rebuttals, with Bank of America's appeal expected some time today.

The government conducted the so-called “stress tests” on 19 of the nation's biggest banks to determine which banks are healthy enough to survive another financial shock and which will need additional government support.

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Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

With the World Health Organization calling the outbreak of swine flu a "public health emergency of international concern," stock markets around the world stumbled overnight and into Monday morning.

At a time when the global economy and financial system are already fragile, such a health scare will likely put the brakes on global travel and trade. The European Union, for example, is urging its citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Mexico and the United States in the face of the outbreak.

Meanwhile, airline and hotel stocks are tanking across the board on fears that a potential pandemic will cripple the global tourism industry.

And as you might expect, shares of the leading flu vaccine makers are getting a lift on the expectation that orders will increase.

Oil prices tumble

Crude oil fell more than 5% overnight as concerns about the potential economic repercussions of a swine flu pandemic weighed on the market and lifted the U.S. dollar.

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General Motors says that about 1,600 salaried workers will lose their jobs in the next few days.

Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

A key survey of leading businesses showed Monday that the nation's economy remained weak in the first quarter, but it also hinted that the decline is slowing.

The National Association of Business Economics' April Industry Survey "provides fresh evidence that the U.S. economy's recession is abating," said Sara Johnson, an analyst on the survey.

"Declines still out number gains, but fewer firms are reporting declines and more are reporting gains," Johnson said. "This suggests that the economy is at an inflection point but has not yet reached a turning point."

The big bank hot streak continues. Bank of America surprised Wall Street this morning by reporting a first quarter profit of $4.2 billion. That was well ahead of expectations.

But the stock fell sharply out of the gate as the bank warned of "deteriorating credit quality."

Over the past two weeks, rivals Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase and even Citigroup - which like Bank of America has received $45 billion in government assistance - have all delivered earnings that exceeded Wall Street's expectations.

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Andrew Torgan
CNN Financial News Producer

The April 15 deadline to file your taxes is just days away, but today is “Tax Freedom Day.”

Americans had to work 103 days from January 1 before they earned enough to pay their taxes for 2009, according to the Tax Foundation. Everything after that is theoretically theirs to keep.

April 13 is the earliest date since 1967. That's eight days earlier than 2008’s “Tax Freedom Day” and a full two weeks earlier than 2007’s.

The Tax Foundation cited two reasons for the shift to an earlier date: The recession has reduced tax collections faster than it has reduced income; plus, the Obama administration's stimulus package includes large temporary tax cuts for 2009 and 2010.

So with millions of Americans facing job losses and the threat of foreclosure, what do you do if you can't pay your taxes? IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman will make an appearance at the National Press Club in Washington today to discuss his agency's new initiatives to help those in financial distress, including giving IRS employees the flexibility to adjust or defer tax payments for certain taxpayers in hardship situations.

Shulman is also expected to highlight the new tax credits available this year, such as those for first time home buyers and car buyers, and give offer advice on what to do if you're having trouble paying your taxes.

CNNMoney.com has launched a special section: “Get Ready for April 15”

In it, you will find tax tips for the unemployed, advice for 10 million late filers and 8 tips to slash your tax bill.

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