Oil prices surpassed a record $126 per barrel on the eve of the U.S. driving season as a weakening dollar drove investors to snap up commodities.

Gasoline and crude oil jumped to new records, with gas rising 3 cents to an average national price of nearly $3.65 a gallon and oil crossing $124 a barrel for the first time.

U.S. employers have cut tens of thousands of jobs in the last few months and layoffs appear to be spreading. If you're worried about your job, now isn't the time to panic. It's time to get prepared.

The number of newly laid off U.S. workers seeking unemployment benefits dropped much more than expected last week. The Labor Department reported Thursday that applications for unemployment benefits fell to 365,000.

Wall Street tumbled as the price of a barrel of oil soared to a record near $124 and touched off concerns that the stock market's recent gains might have been premature while consumers grapple with rising energy and food costs.

Thought about buying a hybrid but have yet to take the plunge? Now may be the time to reconsider. With gas prices high, a hybrid could save you money.

It's for the better in some ways, but not others, says Early Show money maven Ray Martin, who offers guidance to students and parents.

Oil futures blasted to a new record near $123 a barrel, gaining momentum as investors bought on a forecast of much higher prices and on any news hinting at supply shortages.

"Grand Theft Auto IV" raked in more than $500 million in its first week in stores, selling more than 6 million units worldwide, the video game's publisher said.

Clearwire and Sprint Nextel will combine their wireless broadband units to create a $14.55 billion communications company.

Chrysler announced an offer that caps the price of gasoline at $2.99 a gallon for three years for people who buy or lease new vehicles from Wednesday through June 2.

A rising tide of late mortgage payments and home foreclosures poses considerable dangers to the U.S. economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned anew as he urged Congress to take additional steps to alleviate the problems.

A lot of people - especially its stockholders - are worried about the future of Yahoo now that Microsoft has backed away from its offer to buy the company. But Microsoft shareholders also have reason to worry, writes Larry Magid.

The owner of Tropicana casinos in Atlantic City and Las Vegas has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, nearly five months after New Jersey regulators stripped the Tropicana Casino and Resort of its license.

Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang may only have a few months to convince Wall Street that his rebuff of Microsoft's takeover bid was a smart move; if he can't, analysts say he may either be replaced as CEO or forced to consider accepting a lower offer.

The Federal Reserve reports that more U.S. banks are tightening lending standards on home mortgages, other types of consumer loans and business loans in response to a spreading credit crisis.

And the impact on those on the lower end of the scale continues to widen, evidence shows. Benno Schmidt looked into it, and a reporter who just penned a book on the topic discussed it, on The Early Show.

The Federal Reserve and other regulators initiated steps to end "unfair and deceptive" credit card industry practices assailing consumers who are already struggling to cope in a bad economy.

Microsoft says it's dropping its three-month-old bid to buy Yahoo because the two sides can't agree on an acceptable sale price.

Employers cut far fewer jobs in April than in recent months and the unemployment rate dropped to 5 percent. It was a better-than-expected showing that nonetheless still revealed strains in the nation's labor market.