Matthew scott

In a chat with Warren Buffett, former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson called on Congress to allow a special authority to wind down troubled financial institution without taxpayer-funded bailouts. He also predicted bailout money given to banks would be recovered -- with a profit.

Salaried employees hoping their 2010 annual raise will provide some relief as they attempt to recover from the worst economic downturn in 80 years are likely to be disappointed: Raises for U.S. workers may barely keep pace with inflation this year. The average company will budget just 2.8% of its salary pool for wage increases -- the first time in more than two decades that number has fallen below 3%.

The U.S. unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped to 9.7% in January from 10% in December even though 20,000 more jobs were lost. These confusing stats are likely influenced by the ability or unwillingness of large employers to hire full-time workers. Still, at least some economists think the trends are going in the right direction.

An S&P credit warning and two investment firm stock upgrades of MetLife this week highlight a difference of opinion in the investment community about the acceptable level of risk involved in a merger that could make the insurance giant a lot bigger but perhaps a lot more indebted.

Entering February, a mixed picture on employment has developed: Job cuts in January reached their highest total since August, but still represent a 70% reduction from the same time a year ago, when they peaked at 241,749. What's going on?

Money transfer giant Western Union reported a 6.6% profit decline from a year ago, but its uninspired outlook for 2010 scared investors most, sending its stock price down more than 9.5% in early morning trading.

Expect Western Union to report 4Q 2009 results at or slightly above expectations on Wednesday. With profit margins declining, guidance the company offers for 2010 will be key to how the market reacts.

Massive amounts of corporate debt issued from 2003 to 2007 is set to come due over the next four years. The inability of companies to refinance their debt will leave them paying high interest payments, dragging down corporate earnings and forcing some companies into bankruptcy.

Larry Ellison's webcast announcing the completion of the Sun acquisition got overwhelmed by iPad-mania the same day. So much so, that it appeared as if Oracle had made a rare publicity blunder. But maybe not.

After the worst calendar year loss in history, hedge funds came back strongly in 2009, as three separate indexes that track industry performance recorded gains of 18% or more. That didn't stop hedge funds from losing $131 billion through redemptions, but the money that remained was put to good use.