Whether General Motors and Chrysler continue getting billions of dollars in federal loans is the question facing government officials as they prepare to review the "viability plans" from the ailing automakers as part of the terms of their bailouts.   The car companies must submit their proposals by 5 p.m. today to James Lambright, chief investment officer for the Troubled Asset Relief Program.  Under the terms of their federal loans, GM and Chrysler must submit plans to show how they are using taxpayer dollars to become viable businesses.

Workers at the Cowley Plant in Oxford, England, which makes the Mini, are angry as BMW has confirmed that 850 jobs are being cut at the plant and that weekend working has been cancelled.┬á  "Mini plant Oxford will be bringing in a new shift pattern in response to continuing volatile market conditions," a BMW statement said. "As of Monday 2 March, the plant will go from a three-shift to a two-shift pattern, operating five days per week instead of the current seven.

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The chief executives of eight US banks that have received a total of $166 billion in bailout funds will have to tell the House Financial Services Committee today how the money is being spent.  The executives are Vikram Pandit of Citigroup ($45 billion), Kenneth Lewis of Bank of America ($45 billion), Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan Chase ($25 billion), John Stumpf of Wells Fargo ($25 billion), Lloyd Blankfein of Goldman Sachs ($10 billion), John Mack of Morgan Stanley ($10 billion), Robert Kelly of Bank of New York Mellon Corp.

General Motors announced today that it is cutting 10,000 workers, or 14 percent of its salaried jobs worldwide. About a third of those job losses will be in the United States.  Blaming the need to restructure the company amid the continued drop in worldwide vehicle sales, the troubled automaker also said it will cut the pay of its remaining US salaried staff.

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The US unemployment rate rose to 7.6 percent in January, according to official figures, putting it at its highest level since 1992, and signaling that the recession in the worldÔÇÖs largest economy is deepening as companies are reluctant to hire.  ┬á┬á Americans cut back drastically on spending at the end of last year, launching the economy into its worst relapse in a quarter-century.  ┬á┬á Vanishing jobs and evaporating wealth from tanking home values, 401(k)s and other investments have forced consumers to retrench, which has required companies to pull back.

US auto-maker Chrysler prepares to go back to the US Treasury for another $3 billion in government loans this month, while Ford is in talks to sell its Volvo car unit to ChinaÔÇÖs Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd., ChinaÔÇÖs largest privately owned car maker, in order to raise cash to avoid a federal bailout.

Kraft Foods Inc., the worldÔÇÖs second-largest food maker, reported a 72 percent decrease in fourth-quarter profit due to restructuring costs, and said that 2009 earnings will be less than previously forecasted because of the stronger dollar.  Edgar Roesch, an analyst with Soleil Securities, said he had anticipated gains from price increases would help outweigh the negative effects of the dollarÔÇÖs strengthening against other currencies. ┬á ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs a bit of a disappointment,ÔÇØ said Roesch, who recommends holding Kraft shares.