BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS

Americans Receiving Jobless Benefits Hits Record

WASHINGTON (AP) - The number of people receiving unemployment benefits has reached the highest level on records that go back more than 40 years, the government said Thursday, and more layoffs are spreading throughout the economy.

The Labor Department reported that the number of Americans continuing to claim unemployment insurance for the week ending Jan. 17 was a seasonally adjusted 4.78 million, the highest since records started in 1967. That's an increase of 159,000 from the previous week and worse than economists' expectations of 4.65 million.

As a proportion of the work force, the tally of unemployment benefit recipients is the highest since August 1983.

Ford Posts $14.6B 2008 Loss, Still Won't Seek Aid

DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) - After the worst annual loss in its 105-year history, Ford Motor Co. still doesn't plan to seek government aid, but it's borrowing more money and hinting at further restructuring to brace for a tough 2009 and any surprises from the unpredictable economy.

The second-largest U.S.-based automaker on Thursday reported a $14.6 billion net loss for 2008, beating its old record of $12.6 billion set two years earlier. Ford lost $5.9 billion in the fourth quarter, but more importantly it spent $5.5 billion more than it took in, dropping its cash reserves to $13.4 billion at year's end.

The company, like other automakers, predicted a slow start to the year with a small recovery in the second half aided by government stimulus packages. But Ford is behaving like it's expecting things to get worse. The company told lenders Thursday that it wants to borrow the remaining $10.1 billion of its secured credit line. The money is to arrive Tuesday, but Ford executives said they don't plan to use it for operating expenses.

Stocks Fall On Fresh Worries About Economy

NEW YORK (AP) - Two glaring signs that the economy remains in a deep slump sent stocks reeling Thursday.

News that unemployment claims reached a record high and that new home sales hit a record low forced the major stock indexes to give back all of Wednesday's gains, and then some. The Dow Jones industrial average sank 226 points, or 2.7 percent, while other indicators tumbled more than 3 percent.

Volatility still has a grip on the Street. While stocks had soared Wednesday on hopes that the government will take bad debt off banks' books, investors retreated in response to some harsh reminders that it might be a while before the nation's 14-month-old recession ends, even if banks get more aid.

Obama Calls $18B In Wall Street Bonuses 'Shameful'

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama issued a withering critique Thursday of Wall Street corporate behavior, calling it "the height of irresponsibility" for employees to be paid more than $18 billion in bonuses last year while their crumbling financial sector received a bailout from taxpayers.

"It is shameful," Obama said from the Oval Office. "And part of what we're going to need is for the folks on Wall Street who are asking for help to show some restraint, and show some discipline, and show some sense of responsibility."

The president's comments, made with new Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner at his side, came in swift response to a report that employees of the New York financial world garnered an estimated $18.4 billion in bonuses last year. The figure, from the New York state comptroller, drew prominent news coverage.

Obama said he and Geithner will speak directly to Wall Street leaders about the bonuses, which threaten to undermine public support for more government intervention as the economy keeps reeling.

Kodak Posts 4Q Loss, Plans Up To 4,500 Job Cuts

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) - The digital revolution did away with 40,000 jobs at Eastman Kodak Co. over the last five years.

The global recession is reducing the photography icon's ranks still further to around 20,000, a level not seen since the Great Depression.

Kodak said Thursday it lost $137 million in the fourth quarter on plunging sales of both digital and film-based photography products. It plans to eliminate 3,500 to 4,500 jobs, or 14 percent to 18 percent of its work force, in 2009.

Its stock lost nearly 30 percent of its value, sinking $2.08 to end at $4.99, a decades-long low. Shares bottomed at $4.89 earlier in the session.

Its loss in the October-December period amounted to 51 cents a share. That compares with a year-ago profit of $215 million, or 75 cents a share.