As I write to you this week, I am back at my parent’s house in Indiana. I have written before about New Castle and the struggles the town went through back in the ’70s and ’80s. Kind of ironic that I am here when President Bush announces that the automakers are getting a $17 billion bailout.

Dollar up vs yen as BOJ warns of further export woes…  Euro gains broadly; doubts about U.S. auto bailout loom… Market expects ECB rate cut; policy-makers seem divided

General Motors Corp. (GM) and Chrysler LLC will receive $13.4 billion in loans from the federal government as part of an emergency measure to keep the companies operating at least until the spring.

The Bush administration Friday dropped its opposition to using the $700 billion bank bailout fund to provide financing for U.S. automakers after the Senate balked at approving $14 billion emergency loans.

Risk-taking revived but uncertainty lingers… U.S. dollar hits 2-month low vs euro, down vs yen… Don’t let go of recession trades just yet – JPMorgan

Yen slides, dollar dips vs euro on US auto bailout hopes
US could vote on rescue plan as early as Wednesday… BoJ’s Shirakawa comments on FX mkt weigh on yen