U.S. Congress passes economic stimulus package to fend off recession

WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Congress Thursday overwhelmingly passed an economic stimulus package which had been sought by President George W. Bush to fend off a possible recession.

The House approved the bill by a 380-34 vote, just a few hours after the Senate leaders agreed on a modified version of the plan initially backed by the lower chamber last Tuesday. The Senate approved the bill by an 81-16 vote.

According to the stimulus package, individuals who pay income taxes would get up to 600 dollars, working couples 1,200 dollars and those with children an additional 300 dollars per child.

Workers who make at least 3,000 dollars but do not pay taxes would get 300 dollar rebates. The rebates were expected to cost about 100 billion dollars, and the package also includes close to 50 billion dollars in business tax cuts.

The Senate also added a provision granting 300 dollar checks to seniors, disabled veterans and veterans' widows who could show 3,000 dollars in social security or veterans' disability benefits last year.

The package will inject nearly 152 billion dollars into the economy this year and more than 16 billion dollars next year.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said the economic package transcended politics. "This is not a victory for Republicans or Democrats. This is a victory for the American people," he said.

President Bush immediately welcomed the quick approval.

"This plan is robust, broad-based, timely, and it will be effective," Bush said in a statement. "This bill will help to stimulate consumer spending and accelerate needed business investment."

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson also welcomed the approval, saying it would help inject money into the stressed U.S. economy quickly.

"We're going to have the checks out beginning of May and this is largely going to be done by the time summer's over," he added.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Senate passed an economic stimulus package on Thursday to fend off a possible recession and House leaders said they would act soon to send the measures to President George W. Bush.

According to the stimulus package, individuals who pay income taxes would get up to 600 U.S. dollars, working couples 1,200 dollars and those with children an additional 300 dollars per child. Full story

WASHINGTON, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- The White House and Congress reached a tentative deal Thursday on an economic stimulus package to fend off recession.

"I think this is a remarkable package because it is about putting money in the hands of America's working families," said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi after the agreement was reached. Full story

WASHINGTON, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- Recession worries surged, slamming financial markets, amid signs that service businesses -- from hotels and retailers to banks -- may be stumbling in both the U.S. and Europe, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

In the U.S., a key barometer of the strength of the service sector dropped to its lowest level since October 2001, and suggested those businesses are now contracting. In Europe, a similar indicator fell to a four-year low, said the report. Full story

WASHINGTON, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. White House said on Tuesday President George W. Bush will not rule out the possibility of a larger economic stimulus package than that he outlined last week.

"I'm not going to close the door, but I'm not suggesting that anyone believes it has to be bigger than" the 150 billion U.S. dollar figure already bandied about, said the White House spokeswoman Dana Perino. Full story

WASHINGTON, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- President George W. Bush called on Friday for a package of tax cuts and other measures totaling 140 billion dollars to fend off a possible recession.

"This growth package must be big enough to make a difference in an economy as large and dynamic as ours, which means it should be about 1 percent of GDP," Bush said at a White House announcement.