The Motley Fool - Make fun of the so-called "professional students" all you want. You know, the ones who, unlike the TAs, remember the original Dukes of Hazzard TV show. But would you be in a huge hurry to check out of the ivory tower and into debtors' prison?

AFP - Spain's socialist government on Saturday approved a draft austerity budget providing for tax rises worth nearly 11 billion euros (16.1 billion dollars), including increases in value-added tax and income tax.

AP - ANZ Bank said Friday it will buy Dutch-based ING Groep NV's stake in their Australian and New Zealand life insurance and wealth management joint ventures for 1.76 billion Australian dollars ($1.53 billion).

AP - It all comes down to details: The success of the federal government's attempts to keep homeowners from defaulting on their mortgages appears to hinge on small things such as a servicer not losing a customer's documentation.

AP - Tax preparation giant H&R Block Inc. hopes to attract new clients in the coming year with better service at its offices and advertising that reminds the public of its traditional strengths, Chief Executive Officer Russ Smyth said Thursday.

AP - Signaling confidence in a recovery, the Federal Reserve decided Wednesday to stretch out the pace of a program intended to lower mortgage rates and prop up the housing market.

Reuters - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday upgraded its assessment of the U.S. economy, saying growth had returned after a deep recession, while reiterating its promise to hold interest rates very low for a long time.

AP - Fed slows $1.45 trillion mortgage program; says economic activity 'picked up'

AP - These are anxious times for some small business owners who face an Oct. 15 due date for their 2008 income tax returns. These owners got extensions of the deadline for filing their returns back in April but aren't ready to file. Or, they can't pay the government the money they owe.

Reuters - U.S. mortgage applications jumped last week to their highest since late May as interest rates tumbled below 5 percent, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.