Thursday morning links

TOP STORIES
BOE Cuts Rate to Lowest Since Bank’s Creation in 1694 - Bloomberg
State unemployment claim systems overwhelmed - AP
Congress Urges Spending Restraint - Washington Post
Fed faces tough task ending emergency support - Reuters
Schwarzenegger proposes 5 fewer school days - LA Times
Are the first five days of January a harbinger of rest of year? - MarketWatch
The US Government Will Not Choose Deflation - SafeHaven
Andrew Mellon vs. Bailout Nation - Gross, Pimco
Loan Delinquencies Hit Record High Last Year - Washington Post

MARKETS/INVESTING
Oil up to $43 after 12 percent fall overnight - Reuters
Platinum Gains for Sixth Day on Demand; Gold Little Changed - Bloomberg
2008 Leaves Pensions Underfunded - Washington Post
Gold to rise for eighth consecutive year - Telegraph
Investment Newsletter Insights - MarketWatch
Pricing in a jobs apocalypse - CNN/Money

ECONOMY
Initial jobless claims fall, ongoing claims most since 1982 - MarketWatch
Obama Warns of Irreversible Economic Decline Without Action - Bloomberg
Retailers report dismal December sales - AP
Unemployment could get 'truly gruesome', analysts predict - USA Today
Defense spending as 'stimulus'? - CSM
Obama says $800 billion 'start' of stimulus talks - MarketWatch

INTERNATIONAL
Bank of England cuts interest rates to lowest in more than 300 years - Telegraph
U.S. debt is losing its appeal in China - IHT
European Confidence Dropped to Record Low in December - Bloomberg
Shanghai's Office Space Rental on the Edge of a Cliff - China Stakes
ECB Expands Balance Sheet by 36 Percent to Revive Lending - Bloomberg
Spain jobless hits 12-year high - BBC
Shirakawa Says Bank of Japan Still Has Tools to Support Economy - Bloomberg
Lenovo plans to cut 2,500 jobs - IHT
Drop expected for housing prices - Fort McMurray Times

HOUSING
No Recovery for Real Estate as Speculators Dominate Sales - Bloomberg
Radical cheap: $1,000 homes - CNN/Money
Seattle Housing Declines, NWMLS In Denial - Geldpress
Homebuilders push housing aid plan - AP
Home buyers advised to look before they leap - MarketWatch
Karl Rove’s Factually Challenged Housing Revisionism - The Big Picture

FED/TREASURY/BANKING
Fed expands liquidity program for money market funds - MarketWatch
Paulson: Fannie Mae has four options in the future - MarketWatch
Fed’s Hoenig Says U.S. Economy’s Outlook Is ‘Grim’ - Bloomberg

INTERESTING
Stock traders' tough floor routine - LA Times
MGM Mirage scales back CityCenter again - MarketWatch
CBS’s Wallstrip to Scale Back - NY Times
Porn kings Larry Flint and Joe Francis go begging for a bailout - Daily News