AP - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned Tuesday that the financial crisis has not only darkened the country's current economic performance but also could prolong the pain.

AP - Wall Street sank into a deeper depression Tuesday, extending its heavy losses as enthusiasm over Federal Reserve efforts to inject confidence into credit markets gave way to concerns about financial companies' balance sheets. Trading remained fractious, with the Dow Jones industrial average losing more than 300 points.

AP - Leading in the polls, Barack Obama hopes to cement his standing while John McCain is trying to turn his fortunes around in their second presidential debate — with economic turmoil bordering on chaos suddenly serving as the backdrop.

AP - Executives at American International Group Inc. hid the full range of its risky financial products from auditors as losses mounted, according to documents released Tuesday by a congressional panel examining the chain of events that forced the government to bail out the conglomerate.

AP - Americans' retirement plans have lost as much as $2 trillion in the past 15 months, Congress' top budget analyst estimated Tuesday.