U.S. Unemployment Rate Hits 10.2%, Highest in 26 Years

Windfall Is Seen as Bank Bonuses Are Paid in Stock

By LOUISE STORY

Bankers are likely to make unusually large gains on the stock grants and options they received after shares in their companies fell sharply during the financial meltdown.

Broader Measure of U.S. Unemployment Stands at 17.5%

By DAVID LEONHARDT

The official jobless rate excludes millions of people who have given up looking for work and part-time workers who want to be working full time.

Seeing the Glass Half Full Despite the Day’s Reports

By JAVIER C. HERNANDEZ

The market had been expecting unemployment to top 10 percent before peaking. But the pace of job losses has accelerated and the rate is likely to go higher.

• Consumer Borrowing Fell for 8th Month in September

Off the Charts

Car Buyers Come Back, but Not in Droves

By FLOYD NORRIS

A factor causing sluggishness may be that auto companies produced and, with discounts, sold too many cars in the years before the recession.

• Graphic: The Importance of Autos in the Economy

Executives Are Wary After Arrests

Recent arrests in an insider trading case have hedge fund managers and technology company leaders watching their words carefully.

Administration Rejects Plan to Buy Fannie Mae Credits

By EDMUND L. ANDREWS

Goldman Sachs had proposed to pay cash for Fannie Mae’s tax credits, which are tied to investments in affordable housing.

British Bankers Defend Their Pay and Bonuses

By JULIA WERDIGIER

Regulators, central bankers and citizens are criticizing bankers for continuing large compensation packages while receiving government funds.

Berkshire Says Profit Tripled in Quarter

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

The big Warren Buffett-led conglomerate said its third-quarter profit tripled as the improving economy and stock market boosted the value of its derivative contracts.

To Retain Its Bankers, Citi Offers Option Plan

By ERIC DASH

As an extra incentive to keep its bankers, Citigroup said it would grant one stock option at just above the current price for each share employees had accumulated.

A.I.G. Reports Profit but Warns of Continued Volatility

By MARY WILLIAMS WALSH

The insurance giant, which was bailed out last year amid the financial crisis, warned that earnings would remain choppy as the company executes its restructuring plan.

DealBook

Blackstone Reports $275 Million Third-Quarter Profit

By DEALBOOK

Blackstone's profit drew largely upon improving market conditions, which lifted the value of the firm's private equity and hedge fund holdings and added to its performance fees.

DealBook

Choice for Bear Trial Jury: Two Clashing Stories

By DEALBOOK

As closing arguments come to an end, the jury in the trial of two former Bear Stearns hedge fund managers will have to decide which version of reality they believe.

Founders Win a Piece of Skype From eBay

By BRAD STONE

The founders of Skype will drop their lawsuits against the company and a consortium of buyers who bid to purchase Skype. In exchange, the founders will get a 14 percent share in the new Skype.

Questioning a Test for Cancer

By ANDREW POLLACK

Scaring people into quitting is the marketing rationale for a new genetic test, which purports to identify which smokers have the highest risk of developing lung cancer.

• Gauging the Risks From a Smoker’s DNA and History

Your Money

Money Issues That Can Test Even a Rock-Solid Marriage

By RON LIEBER

Money may be the root of all evil, and in a marriage it can certainly be the seed of trouble. Here are five things couples should do to sidestep difficulties.

• What was the toughest financial challenge that you faced as a couple, and did your relationship survive it?

Patient Money

In Anxious Times, Medical Help for the Mind as Well as the Body

By LESLEY ALDERMAN

A new law requires that next year big group plans provide the same level of care for mental health as for medical ones.

• Post a Comment

Shortcuts

Bridging the Workplace Generation Gap: It Starts With a Text

By ALINA TUGEND

The book “How Not to Act Old” has some tips to help the 40-plus crowd communicate with younger co-workers.

Prep Schools Face Cuts in Student Aid

By GERALDINE FABRIKANT

The institutions’ endowments have suffered, making schools scramble for ways to keep their doors open to students who do not come from wealthy families.

Beijing Denounces U.S. Duties on Chinese-Made Pipes

By REUTERS

China denounced new duties as protectionist, a week before President Obama is due in China talks.

• New U.S. Tax on Chinese Pipes

British Airways to Cut Another 1,200 Jobs

By NICOLA CLARK

The total number of planned staff reductions rises to nearly 5,000 as the British carrier wrestles with what its chief executive called the toughest year in the history of aviation.

G.M. Executive Quits Over Opel Decision

By NICK BUNKLEY

The head of European operations for General Motors quit after the automaker backed out of a deal to sell its Opel brand, a decision that has angered German workers and government officials.

Virtual Goods Start Bringing Real Paydays

By CLAIRE CAIN MILLER and BRAD STONE

It is quickly becoming commonplace for people to spend a few dollars to get ahead in an online game or to give a friend a gift on a social network.