SNAPSHOT - Financial Crisis - 0055 GMT

NEWS - CEOs of top U.S. auto companies ask Congress for $34 billion in federal aid - General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC tell Senate Banking Committee they would consider restarting merger talks - European Central Bank makes biggest-ever cut to interest rates, lowering benchmark credit costs by 75 basis points - Bank of England, Reserve Bank of New Zealand and Sweden's central bank all announce big rate cuts - Bank of England said working on radical plans to inject cash directly into the British economy as a last resort - Number of U.S. workers on jobless benefits rolls hits 26-year high in November - Top U.S. phone company AT&T Inc to eliminate 12,000 jobs, about 4 percent of its workforce. Viacom also cutting - Many U.S. retailers post sharply lower November sales at stores open at least a year, Wal-Mart bucks trend - Disappointing outlooks from blue-chip companies such as drugmaker Merck - Interest rates on U.S. 30-year fixed-rate mortgages plunge by largest amount in 27 years - Activity in Australia's Construction industry shrinks for a ninth consecutive month in November - Tentative drop in official foreign currency reserves not a big problem, South Korea's vice finance minister says MARKETS - U.S. stocks fall, sharp drop in oil prices, disappointing profit outlooks from large companies. Dow down 2.51 pct - Chevron among the top drags on the Dow - Oil falls more than 6 percent to its lowest level in nearly four years - European shares end lower after steep rate cuts by European Central Bank, Bank of England and Sweden's Riksbank - Asian shares fall, Nikkei down 1 percent on exporter weakness - Euro rises and sterling trades off a session low against the dollar even after the big European rate cuts - Dollar falls against basket of major currencies. Against the yen, the dollar dips 1.12 percent - Gold prices end lower QUOTES "I'm skeptical, doubtful that it's going to end at $34 billion." - Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Economy.com on auto industry's pleas for government aid. "The consensus is looking for a pretty deep recession. There are going to be a lot more (layoffs) and we can barely see the tip of the iceberg." - Robert MacIntosh, chief economist at Eaton Vance Corp in Boston. "When are we going to get the next piece of good news?" - Cummins Catherwood, managing director at Boenning and Scattergood, in West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. "It is imperative that the federal government act this month to provide an emergency bridge loan to the domestic auto companies. Without such assistance, GM could run out of funds by the end of the year and Chrysler soon after. These companies would then be forced to liquidate." - UAW President Ron Gettelfinger. "Despite good-faith efforts by both the private and public sectors, the foreclosure rate remains too high, with adverse consequences for both those directly involved and for the broader economy. More needs to be done." - U.S.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. EVENTS MONDAY, Dec. 8 LONDON - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso meet with European business leaders in London. (Compiled by World Desk, Americas, [phone]) Keywords: FINANCIAL/SNAPSHOT COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2008. All rights reserved.

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