BUSINESS NEWS CHANNEL : Reuters Business Channel

Car sales plunge heralding bleak 2009 - DETROIT (Reuters) - U.S. auto sales plunged by 36 percent in December led by outsized declines at Chrysler LLC, Hyundai Motor and Toyota Motor Corp as the battered industry closed out its weakest year since 1992 in its largest single market.

Stocks slip on telecom and financials; Apple jumps - NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks fell on Monday as investors booked profits after last week's run-up, while concerns about slowing cell phone sales hit shares of the biggest telecommunications companies.

Prosecutors seek to jail Madoff - NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors asked a judge to jail accused swindler Bernard Madoff on Monday, saying he sent jewelry and other items worth more than $1 million to family and friends in violation of his bail.

GE's finance arm launches $10 billion FDIC-backed debt - NEW YORK (Reuters) - General Electric Co's finance arm on Monday launched a $10 billion sale of FDIC-backed debt, the largest sale under the government guarantee program since its inception last November.

Fed buys MBS in latest unconventional move - NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve on Monday kick-started its latest unconventional program to boost the moribund economy, this time taking aim at the heart of the slumping housing market.

Economists seek solutions, signs of life in housing - SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Top economists at the Allied Social Sciences Association's annual meeting have been searching -- in some cases, in vain -- for signs of life in the U.S. housing market, a key element for busting the country out of a deep economic downturn.

Apple's Jobs reassures investors about his health - NEW YORK (Reuters) - Apple Inc Chief Executive Steve Jobs sought to soothe investor concerns about his health on Monday, saying his weight loss was caused by a hormone imbalance that is relatively simple to treat.

Cigna to cut 1,100 jobs, citing weak economy - LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Health insurer Cigna Corp said on Monday it will cut 1,100 jobs, or about 4 percent of its workforce, and consolidate certain operations as it copes with the economic downturn.

Ex-eBay CEO Whitman eyes run for California governor - SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Former eBay Inc Chief Executive Meg Whitman has resigned from three corporate boards for personal reasons, a turn-of-the-year move that would free her to run for governor of California.

LDK shares slide after issues revenue warning - LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Solar wafer maker LDK Solar Co Ltd warned on Monday of lower-than-expected fourth quarter and 2009 revenue, saying the global economic crisis and tight credit markets have weakened demand for solar power, sending its shares down nearly 14 percent.