WASHINGTON — Driven by a sour economy and skittish consumers, U.S. business bankruptcies saw their sharpest quarterly rise in two years, jumping 17 percent in the second quarter of 2008, according to an analysis by McClatchy.

Commercial filings for the first half of 2008 are up 45 percent from last year, as the national climate for commerce continues to deteriorate amid rising energy and food costs, mounting job losses, tighter credit and a reticence among consumers to part with discretionary income.

From April through June, 15,471 U.S. businesses called it quits, according to data from Automated Access to Court Electronic Records, an Oklahoma City bankruptcy management and data company. » read more

Eileen Selkis had some money left over from selling her house in Connecticut, and she knew she couldn't afford to lose any of it.

She says her broker at Wachovia Securities pointed out that she could get a good return – better than the money market account it was in – by moving it to something called auction-rate securities.

The higher interest rate was appealing, but Selkis wanted to make sure she'd be able to access her money easily. » read more

As foreclosures continue to mount, borrowers who have run out of options are turning to attorneys to fight back — and they're living mortgage-free for months in the process.

Although the chances of ultimately keeping a foreclosed home are slim, for $1,500 to $3,000 some lawyers are offering to defend borrowers in court, causing the wheels of justice to turn more slowly.

Duking it out can add months and sometimes years to a foreclosure process that in Florida already takes an average of seven months to complete. Homeowners can use the extra time to save for a move, sell the house or mull other options. » read more

For the third straight month, Sacramneto-area home sales climbed above figures for the same time last year, a welcome indicator in a region searching for the bottom of its long housing slump. But median prices continued to slide.

The 3,922 June escrow closings in Amador, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties were the most since June 2006, DataQuick Information Systems reported Thursday.

Heavily discounted repossessed homes, however, have pushed median sales prices across the region to 4 1/2-, five- and even almost six-year lows, according to DataQuick statistics. » read more

WASHINGTON — Ideas to lower the nation's high energy prices faced a whirlwind of hearings, press conferences, speeches and votes on energy in Washington, D.C., on Thursday.

"It's clear that the American people are suffering and deserve our attention, and hopefully, some solutions," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, testifying at the first event of the day, a Senate hearing featuring energy expert Daniel Yergin.

Yergin told senators that to address high prices, the United States needs an approach that includes "new supplies, renewables and greater efficiencies." Something as simple as getting everyone in American to check the air pressure on their car tires could save thousands of barrels of oil a day, Yergin said. » read more