Business

Smaller is better? Some might call that idea an affront to a deeply ingrained American mantra of bigger, better, stronger. In the auto business, however, the answer to that question is getting increasingly obvious.

New York -- U.S. markets rose Monday morning after the Commerce Department said consumer spending increased marginally in December.

New York -- Crude oil prices opened higher on the New York Mercantile Exchange Monday morning, climbing above $73 per barrel.

Washington -- Consumer spending rose 0.2 percent in December, pushed by a 0.4 percent increase in incomes, the U.S. Commerce Department said Monday.

New York -- Worry over a 10 percent slump in stock markets, officially known as a correction, are percolating on Wall Street, after a hard slide in January.

San Jose -- California car company Telsa Motors Inc, makers of all-electric vehicles, is ready to go public, a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission said.

Washington -- Banks in Minnesota, California, Georgia, Florida and Washington state have been closed by regulators, officials say.

Brussels -- The resolution of the Honduras political crisis could mean the quick resumption of Central American trade talks, European Union officials say.

Brussels -- Unemployment in the 16 countries that share the euro as currency climbed one tick in December to 10 percent, the European Union's statistical office said.