Weekly news roundup.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the Treasury Department has cut the amount of cash it intends to invest in two key programs, part of a shuffling of resources designed to give the government wriggle room in case it needs to launch fresh bailouts. Initially, the Treasury said it planned to invest $100 billion from its bailout funds in TALF (Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility). Now, it will contribute $55 billion.

Also, the Wall Street Journal has said that The Fed is buying hundreds of billions of dollars of low-interest-rate mortgages guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The purchases, which so far amount to $250 billion and could grow to $1.25 trillion, have driven mortgage rates to historical lows, inducing house purchases and sparking a refinancing wave.

In an Associated Press blurb, five banks have paid back about $353 million back in loans already. The banks are: Iberiabank Corp. of Lafayette, La.; Bank of Marin Bancorp of Novato, Calif.; Old National Bancorp. of Evansville, Ind.; Signature Bank of New York; and Centra Financial Holdings Inc. of Morgantown, W.Va.

Internationally this week, the G-20 (that is, the top 20 policy makers) met this week to discuss the economy in London. In a Bloomberg article, world leaders agreed on a regulatory blueprint for reining in the excesses that fed the worst financial crisis in six decades and pledged more than $1 trillion in emergency aid to cushion the economic fallout. Who the money is going to, and what it entails seems a bit more vague, though.

In state news this week, it seems like the only thing keeping Michigan alive is final four basketball. Yes, that’s right. The news is spinning that people are forgetting about the economy, the market, and the job loss in lieu of watching Michigan State in Final Four glory.

In a Bloomberg Press article, Frank Gegovic, 32, general manager of Detroit Beer Co. said, “It’s going to make people forget what’s going on for about three days.”

Why? Well, if you believe an L.A. Times article, the recession is a “he-session”. That is to say, more men are affected by job loss than women. In February, the unemployment numbers were 8.8% for men and 7.3% for women, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The wide difference is only supposed to get wider.

However, no amount of basketball is going to have Michiganders forget that more state budget cuts are on the way, according to a Free Press article. The reason? State tax collections are falling $100 million a month short of dire predictions made three months ago.

But, don’t worry, public schools and universities are protected under the federal stimulus. It’s welfare, unemployment, prisons, and revenue sharing that are going to take the hit.

What’s unemployment going to be like for March? Well, probably higher since unemployment in Jackson County was up to 11.1 percent. So, expect it to go up even a little bit for last month. We’ve pushed to the 12 percent mark, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to end anytime soon.