Any congressional bailout of the distressed U.S. auto industry is not intended to be "life support," but doing nothing "is not an option," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Friday.

Sales of many high-end luxury cars are bucking the trend of plummeting car sales, and their makers and industry watchers at the Los Angeles Auto Show this week are confident that they will weather the industry downturn just fine.

The head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said Thursday she is optimistic the agency will be able to obtain money from the $700 billion bailout fund to launch its proposed home-loan modification program quickly.

Chrysler hopes to restart merger talks with General Motors if the government comes up with a bailout package for automakers, the Financial Times reported Thursday.

Many of the world's biggest automakers detailed ambitious electric-car plans that promise zero emissions but will demand patience from consumers and subsidies from governments to succeed.

As Capitol Hill wrestles with a bailout of the Big Three Detroit automakers, CNBC decided to look into the Senate representation of the U.S. automotive manufacturing base. What follows is a state-by-state compilation of auto plants:

U.S. oil demand for the first 10 months of 2008 fell at rates not seen since the recessions of the early 1980s, the American Petroleum Institute said on Wednesday.

OPEC is worried by the worsening world economy and the falling oil price, which has wiped close to $700 billion from its coffers, OPEC President Chakib Khelil was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

If the US auto industry is to survive, it will have to undergo a major transformation—slashing operations,  focusing on fewer models, shedding dealerships and making better cars, analysts say.

A Saudi supertanker hijacked by pirates with a $100 million oil cargo in the largest ever such seizure may have reached the coast of north Somalia, a regional maritime group said on Tuesday.

OPEC on Monday cut its forecast for world demand for its crude oil next year due to the slowing global economy, building a case for further oil supply cuts to prop up prices.

OPEC could leave a decision on cutting oil supplies until December, but is likely to give the market early warning at a meeting later this month in Cairo.

When it comes to sustainability, Dell is thinking big -- and small. And it's the big things that are paying off the most.

Like many companies, the Marriott International has a number of energy-saving, environmentally-friendly initiatives, but with 300 hotels, 300,000 employees and millions of guests around the world the company says it has "a real ability to educate and inspire" employees and customers alike.

Steven Strong, president of Solar Design Associates, recalls standing on the roof of the White House with President Jimmy Carter more than 30 years ago when Carter dedicated the first solar system  there. He also remembers when the Reagan administration consigned that system to the dumpster. " “I made it a career goal to get solar back on the White House, " says strong.  And he did.