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Federal regulators are blocking Duke Energy’s planned acquisition of Progress Energy to form the country’s largest electric company, ruling the companies haven’t done enough to protect competition in their North Carolina and South Carolina home markets.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission had scheduled a Thursday hearing on changes to the merger plans in Washington, but regulators surprised the utilities late Wednesday by rejecting the companies’ solution to protect competition.

The FERC action is likely to delay the merger’s year-end target for completion and could require changes that the companies find unattractive.

A Duke spokesman said the company was reviewing the order. He wouldn’t comment about how it affects Duke’s commitment to the deal.

Jefferies & Co. analyst Paul Fremont said the companies’ next move will be to take a serious look at their power plants and decide which can be sold. Any proposed sale must be reviewed by state regulators, who would need guarantees that it wouldn’t affect pre-negotiated power rates for utility customers.

The order will delay the deal by about three months, at least, he said. The companies also may walk away from the deal at this point, deciding that the government was demanding too many sacrifices. “It’s too early to say at this point” what will happen, Fremont said.

The federal agency in September questioned the deal’s impact on customers in North and South Carolina. Regulators suggested that the companies consider a number of measures that would diminish their influence, such as selling power plants, building new transmission lines or giving up control of their transmission system to a regional operator. The companies responded last month with a plan to sell excess electricity at a fixed price to wholesale buyers in their Carolinas territories.

Regulators now say the proposal by Charlotte-based Duke and Raleigh-based Progress doesn’t go far enough.

The “mitigation proposal does not remedy the proposed transaction’s adverse effects on competition,” the FERC ruling said.

Duke first announced it planned to buy Progress in January for $13.7 billion. If approved, the combined company will serve 7.1 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky.

Duke shares rose 12 cents to $20.97 in premarket trading Thursday while Progress shares added 6 cents to $54.49.

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Asian stock markets rose Monday as investors cheered a new European fiscal pact aimed at fixing the region’s debt crisis and preventing a collapse of the euro currency.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index jumped 1.5 percent to 8,665.76. South Korea’s Kospi added 1.2 percent to 1,896.35 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.6 percent to 18,874.22.

Under the deal reached Friday, all 17 countries that use the euro agreed to allow a central European authority to oversee their future budgets. They also agreed to automatic penalties if they spend too much.

In addition to tighter controls on spending, Europe’s new “fiscal compact” calls for the launch of a permanent bailout fund for euro nations in 2012, a year ahead of schedule. The deal also will send 200 billion euros ($267 billion) to the International Monetary Fund, which controls another emergency fund for countries in crisis.

But the deal won’t help cut debt today, which in Italy, Greece and Spain has driven government borrowing costs close to levels considered unsustainable installment payday loans. That loose end brought into focus the future monetary policy of the European Central Bank, and whether it would be willing to buy enough national bonds from troubled countries to keep interest rates down.

Analysts at Credit Agricole CIB said “the lack of ECB action in terms of stepping up to the plate as lender of the last resort” still weighed on investment sentiment.

There were also doubts about the willingness of each individual country to ratify the agreement.

Benchmark oil for January delivery was down 7 cents to $99.34 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.07 to finish at $99.41 per barrel on the Nymex on Friday.

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European markets were little changed Thursday after the European Central Bank delivered another interest rate cut before a crucial summit of European Union leaders that could determine whether the euro currency survives or not.

The decision by the European Central Bank to reduce its main interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 1 percent was expected and investors will be looking to see if its new ECB President Mario Draghi hints at further cuts in the months ahead amid growing signs of a recession in the 17-country eurozone.

“Expectation is growing that the ECB may look to cut its main policy rate below the current record low of 1 percent in coming months if the economic situation continues to deteriorate,” said Chris Williamson, an analyst at Markit.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 0.3 percent at 5,562 while Germany’s DAX rose 0.2 percent to 6,043. The CAC-40 in France was 0.3 percent lower at 3,164. The euro was 0.2 percent higher at $1.3417.

Wall Street was poised for modest gains on the open _ Dow futures were up 0.1 percent at 12,231 while the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 futures rose 0.1 percent to 1,265.

Traders were looking to Draghi’s press conference later Thursday to see what he says about the bank’s limited bond-buying program.

Draghi has said the central bank is ready to do more to support bond markets provided that European politicians agree to closer budget controls among the 17 countries that use the euro. Germany and France have proposed a plan on closer fiscal unity that will dominate debate at Friday’s EU summit.

Investors hope if European governments can agree to tighter spending oversight, the ECB will step up its support for the bond markets. It currently buys bonds in the markets, but only reluctantly, and in small quantities.

“The ECB has made it clear that the sequencing of events is all-important, a hint that if the EU takes a significant step towards more fiscal discipline then it will continue to support the market in size and maybe in words as well,” said Gary Jenkins, an analyst at Evolution Securities.

“Let’s hope what is decided is enough to keep the ECB satisfied, so that it keeps up its support for markets,” he added same day payday loans.

Hopes that Europe was finally readying a decisive plan to deal with its crippling debt crisis had helped stocks rise over the past couple of weeks, as well as pushing the borrowing rates of countries like Italy down to more manageable levels.

The ten-year yield on Italy’s bonds is currently trading around the 6 percent mark, down on the 7 percent level that it traded at as recently as last week. Borrowing rates of over 7 percent are considered unsustainable and eventually caused Greece, Ireland and Portugal to seek financial bailouts.

The French-German proposal to enshrine tougher budget rules in European treaties is being met with resistance by the European Council, an institution that defines the priorities of the entire 27-nation EU. Its president, Herman Van Rompuy, favors a simpler route _ amending existing rules that apply to the 17 euro countries to avoid the trickier step of requiring every country to approve the new treaty.

The potential for disagreement at the summit weighed on Asian stocks earlier as it had done in Europe and the U.S. on Wednesday.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.7 percent to 8,664.58, dragged down by weaker-than-expected machinery orders. South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.4 percent to 1,912.39 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng shed 0.7 percent to 19,107.81.

But mainland Chinese shares rose, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index gaining 0.1 percent to 2,329.82 after losing more than 1 percent earlier in the day to approach an intraday low for the year. The Shenzhen Composite Index gained 0.1 percent to 970.95.

Oil prices rose modestly in line with the modest advance in Europe _ benchmark oil for January delivery was up 38 cents to $100.87 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange

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Pamela Sampson in Bangkok contributed to this report.

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New polymer banknotes demand that all money-handling machines in the country be upgraded at a cost of $75-100 million, the Bank of Canada estimates.

That compares to $20-30 million for the last conversion in 2004-2006, bank spokesperson Julie Girard said Tuesday.

Leaders from across Latin America and the Caribbean pledged closer ties to safeguard their economies from the world financial crisis as they formed a new bloc on Saturday including every nation in the hemisphere except the U.S. and Canada.

Several presidents stressed during the two-day summit that they hope to ride out turbulent times by boosting local industries and increasing trade within the region.

“It seems it’s a terminal, structural crisis of capitalism,” Bolivian President Evo Morales said in a speech Saturday. “I feel we’re meeting at a good moment to debate … the great unity of the countries of America, without the United States.”

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and some of his closest allies called the new regional bloc a tool for opposing U.S. influence. But other leaders focused more on economic concerns and on working together to confront issues such as drug trafficking and the effects of climate change.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said that if the nations are to keep thriving they will need to look more to their neighbors.

“The economic, financial crisis should be at the center of our concerns,” Rousseff said Friday night. She said Latin America should “realize that to guarantee its current cycle of development despite the international economic turbulence, it means that every politician must be aware that each one needs the others.”

The region has so far weathered the economic woes better than the U.S. or Europe, achieving economic growth of more than 5 percent last year.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said the region has immense potential “in this world that’s going through great uncertainty, where there’s a hurricane that’s hitting the so-called industrialized economies hard.” He said Colombia’s current trade with Brazil, for instance, is minimal and could grow significantly.

Chavez read aloud a letter from Chinese President Hu Jintao congratulating the leaders on forming a new 33-nation regional bloc, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States. Hu pledged to deepen cooperation with the new group.

The U.S. remains the top trading partner of many countries in the region, with exceptions including Brazil and Chile, where China has become the biggest trading partner. China has also made diplomatic inroads, including by granting about $38 billion in loans to Venezuela in exchange for increasing shipments of oil.

Chilean President Sebastian Pinera touted the region’s opportunities for growth, while Argentine President Cristina Fernandez said building trade among the countries should be a priority.

Bolivia’s Morales took a different focus, strongly criticizing the International Monetary Fund and saying “they’ve just pillaged us and led us to poverty.”

Morales also appealed for strong steps at this month’s climate change conference in South Africa, saying it’s critical that developed nations renew pledges to cut greenhouse gas emissions under the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.

“If they kill the protocol, they kill the planet,” Morales said.

Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, also expressed concerns about changing weather patterns and said nations should work together to better plan for disasters.

Several leaders called for closer cooperation to fight criminals and drug trafficking.

“Our region is seriously threatened by organized crime,” Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom said.

Colombia’s Santos said the new bloc could help in re-examining whether current counter-drug efforts are the right approach.

Caribbean leaders including Haitian President Michel Martelly thanked Chavez for selling their nations oil on preferential terms, including long-term, low interest loans.

“The people of Haiti love you with all their hearts,” Martelly told Chavez during his speech, saying “south-south cooperation” is key to the future of his impoverished country.

Chavez assured leaders he will survive cancer, reiterating that he underwent recent tests in Cuba after finishing chemotherapy and they found no “malignant cells in any part of my body, thanks to God.”

Trinidad’s prime minister gave Chavez a vial of what she described as holy water, and Chavez thanked her, saying “soon we will have a summit of those of us who’ve beaten cancer.”

Venezuela’s government celebrated the gathering at a Caracas military base with bursts of fireworks that could be heard from the session. Other events included an orchestral performance led by Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel and a post-summit concert headlined by Puerto Rican hip-hop duo Calle 13.

The leaders planned to formally launch the new bloc known by its Spanish initials CELAC on Saturday by approving the group’s procedural rules as well as a clause dealing with democratic norms and a declaration of shared principles.

Both Chavez and Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa said they hope the bloc eventually overshadows the importance of the Washington-based Organization of American States. Unlike the OAS, the new group will have Cuba as a full member and exclude the U.S. and Canada.

“We need a new inter-American system and, more specifically, a new system to guarantee human rights,” Correa said Friday, referring to the Washington-based Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which has received complaints from Ecuadorean newspapers and television channels that accuse his government of trying to silence critics.

“All these attacks and threats are made in the name of freedom of expression,” Correa added, accusing powerful media outlets of manipulating public opinion.

Several other presidents said they see CELAC as an important forum to resolve conflicts and build closer ties, but not as an alternative to existing bodies such as the OAS.

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Stocks soared in morning trading Wednesday after major central banks acted together to support the global financial system by cutting short-term borrowing rates.

The Dow Jones industrial average jumped more than 400 points in early trading Wednesday, and was up 392 hour after the opening bell.

Markets in Europe also surged. Germany’s DAX index jumped 4.9 percent. The euro and commodities prices rose sharply. U.S. Treasury prices fell as demand weakened for ultra-safe assets.

The central banks of Europe, the U.S., Britain, Canada, Japan and Switzerland eased banks’ access to dollars by reducing their borrowing rates. They were responding to fears that a European country will default, touching off a credit crunch similar to what followed the 2008 collapse of Lehman Brothers.

Borrowing rates for European nations have skyrocketed on concerns that the European debt crisis has engulfed nations such as Italy which are too big to bail out. Borrowing rates for Italy, Spain and others have soared.

Banks need dollars to fund their daily operations. Their access dried up as U.S. money market funds reduced their lending to European banks.

The central banks’ action takes some pressure off the financial system, which has signaled in recent days that banks are losing faith in their trading partners. Banks need to trust each other to maintain healthy flows of credit and keep the system working.

The Dow Jones industrial average leaped 392 points, or 3.4 percent, to 11,948 at 10:20 a.m. Over the past three days the Dow has gained back all of the 564-point loss it had over Thanksgiving week.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index jumped 39, or 3.2 percent, to 1,234. The Nasdaq composite index gained 78, or 3.1 percent, to 2,594.

The move by central banks does not address the fundamental problem posed by heavily indebted European nations. European finance ministers in Brussels have been meeting since Tuesday but have failed to deliver a clearer sense of how the currency union will proceed.

Investor sentiment was also lifted by China’s move to reduce bank reserve levels Wednesday to release money for lending and help shore up slowing growth. Higher growth in China could be crucial for a global economy that’s suffering in the wake of European debt crisis.

Beijing announced that the amount of money China’s commercial lenders must hold in reserve will be cut by 0.5 percent of their deposits, effective Dec. 5. It was the first easing of monetary policy in three years and analysts are expecting more.

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World stock markets were mostly higher Friday following signs of progress in debt-plagued Europe _ a successful bond sale in Italy and the naming of a new leader in Greece.

Benchmark oil rose to $98 per barrel while the dollar slipped against the euro and the yen.

European shares posted gains in early trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.6 percent at 5,472.80. Germany’s DAX rose 0.9 percent at 5,919.99 while France’s CAC-40 added 0.8 percent to 3,087.77.

Wall Street was also poised for gains, with Dow Jones industrial futures 0.1 percent higher at 11,869 and S&P 500 futures rising 0.2 percent to 1,239.30.

The gains in Europe were in line with trading earlier in the day in Asia.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed up 0.2 percent to 8,514.47, a day after the index fell to a five-week closing low of 8,500.80.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.9 percent to 19,137.17 and South Korea’s Kospi added 2.8 percent to 1,863.45. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.2 percent to 4,296.50. Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose marginally to 2,481.08.

Investors were calmed by news that Greece _ which is struggling to pull back from the brink of bankruptcy _ had named Lucas Papademos, a respected economist, as its new prime minister on Thursday.

Another sign of stability came after Italy was able to borrow $6.8 billion at lower interest rates than analysts expected. On Wednesday, Italy’s 10-year bond yields shot up alarmingly, stoking panic in financial markets that the country was heading toward a Greece-style debt crisis.

Confidence was also boosted by the prospect of economist Mario Monti replacing Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who has been viewed as an obstacle to meaningful economic reform.

“Europe still dominates and there are still huge concerns, but Greece has a new prime minister and Italy has a new prime minister in the wings, and everyone is much more aware of the seriousness of the nature of what is confronting Europe,” said Andrew Sullivan, principal sales trader at Piper Jaffray in Hong Kong.

Traders have fretted that debt troubles in Italy and Greece could blow up into a massive liquidity crisis and lead to a global financial meltdown.

The European Union warned Thursday that the grouping of 17 nations that use the euro common currency could slip back into recession next year. The European Commission predicted the euro countries will grow a barely perceptible 0.5 percent in 2012 _ much less than its earlier forecast of 1.8 percent.

Europe has already bailed out Greece, Portugal and Ireland _ but Italy is a much larger economy and its mountain of debt _ $2 faxless cash advance.6 trillion (euro1.9 trillion) _ is far too massive for the continent to cover.

Sullivan said economic data next week on the world’s No. 1 economy will be closely watched.

“If any of that data comes out bad, it’s probably going to put Asia into more of a downturn. If there’s bad data out of the U.S. and more out of Europe, we can see Asia taking another step down,” Sullivan said.

Hong Kong-based ERA Mining Machinery Ltd. shot up 19.7 percent after U.S.-based Caterpillar Inc. said it was seeking to buy the Chinese maker of mining machinery for as much as $886 million. ERA designs, builds, sells and supports equipment for underground coal mining in China.

In Seoul, technology shares jumped. LG Electronics gained 6.4 percent and Samsung Electronics was up 5.1 percent. Shares of SK Telecom Co., South Korea’s top mobile carrier, rose 3.1 percent after the company offered to buy a controlling stake in Hynix Semiconductor, Yonhap News Agency reported.

India’s privately owned Kingfisher Airlines dropped 12.7 percent after the carrier was forced to cancel dozens of flights as pilots and crew called in sick after their October salaries were delayed.

In New York on Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 1 percent to close at 11,893.86. It plunged 389 points Wednesday after Italy’s borrowing rates soared and talks in Greece to name a new prime minister broke down.

Positive economic data from the U.S. also boosted hopes that the world’s No. 1 economy would avoid a new recession.

The Labor Department reported that the number of people applying for unemployment benefits in the U.S. fell to 390,000 last week _ the fewest since April. The data suggested layoffs are easing and that the economy grew slightly better over the summer than estimated.

The S&P 500 index gained 0.9 percent to 1,239.70. The Nasdaq rose 0.1 percent to 2,625.15.

In currency trading, the euro rose to $1.3653 from $1.3581 late Thursday in New York. The dollar fell to 77.34 yen from 77.66 yen.

Benchmark oil was up 30 cents at $98.08 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $2.04, or 2.1 percent, to finish at $97.78 on Thursday.

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The complex network of flood defenses erected to shield Thailand’s capital from the country’s worst floods in nearly 60 years was put to the test early Saturday as coastal high tides hit their peak. No major breaches were immediately reported.

Fear gripped Bangkok early in the day as tides along the Gulf of Thailand crested at about 9 a.m. and pushed the city’s main waterway, the Chao Phraya river, to its brink. Overflows so far have lightly inundated riverside streets from Chinatown to the famed Temple of the Emerald Buddha.

But the white-walled royal Grand Palace was dry, less than 24 hours after being ringed by ankle-deep water, and the landmark remained open to tourists. Many visitors carried parasols to protect themselves from the blistering sunshine.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said in her weekly radio address that floodwaters that had wreaked havoc to provinces north of Bangkok in the last several weeks had started to recede, and she urged citizens to let the crisis take its course.

“We have the good news that the situation in the central region has improved as runoff water gradually decreased,” she said. “I thank people and urge them to be more patient in case this weekend is significant because of the high tide.”

She also said that the government had implemented a plan to accelerate the drainage rate and that water in the greater Bangkok area should recede by the first week of November.

Meanwhile, the streets of downtown Bangkok _ the country’s financial heart _ were bone-dry and bustling with taxis, restaurant-goers and tourists snapping pictures. But the city remained in peril, as high tides along the gulf were expected to crest again late in the day, threatening to obstruct the flood runoff from the north. The government also is worried major barriers and dikes could break.

Also on Saturday, the government’s Flood Relief Operations Center was forced to move its headquarters from its base at Don Muang airport, which is used mostly for domestic flights, to a government building nearby after a power transformer malfunctioned. Authorities were forced to shut down the airport this week after floodwaters rushed in.

On Friday, saffron-robed monks and soldiers piled sandbags outside the capital’s most treasured temples and palaces as the Chao Phraya swelled precariously beyond its banks. Most of the water receded at low tide, but worried Bangkokians were buying up bright orange lifejackets and inflatable boats, fearing the worst is yet to come.

“You have to prepare,” said Fon Kanokporn, a banker who bought a rubber boat from a store that had several hanging from trees out front as advertisements.

Employees at the shop said they had sold well over 3,000 boats in the last week. The brisk business is a measure of the fear gripping Bangkok and a reflection of the tragedy of neighboring provinces that have been submerged for weeks. Several buyers said they needed boats because their submerged homes outside the capital were no longer accessible by road.

Three months of relentless monsoon rains have caused the worst flooding in Thailand in more than half a century, triggering a national crisis that has overwhelmed Yingluck’s government online payday loans.

The water has crept from the central plains south toward the Gulf of Thailand for weeks, engulfing a third of the country and killing nearly 400 people and displacing 110,000 more. Now, Bangkok is in the way _ surrounded by behemoth pools of water flowing around and through the city via a complex network of canals and rivers.

On Friday, army trucks dumped thousands of sandbags outside the riverside Siriraj Hospital, where Thailand’s ailing and revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej has stayed since 2009.

Elsewhere along the Chao Phraya, dozens of monks at the 200-year-old Temple of the Dawn stacked hundreds more along a secondary barrier to protect against river overflows.

“It’s likely going to get higher, but I don’t think its going to get high enough to cause chaos,” said Phramaha Abhin, a 42-year-old monk. Still, he said, “we cannot neglect the risk to this temple. It’s one of the country’s landmarks, one of the things Thailand is known for. We have to protect it.”

The State Railway of Thailand said all train services from Bangkok to southern Thailand were suspended after the tracks in Bangkok’s suburbs were submerged by floodwaters.

Thais and expatriates alike continued to leave Bangkok as foreign governments urged their citizens to avoid the threatened city, citing transportation difficulties and shortages of certain food items.

Seven of Bangkok’s 50 districts _ all in the northern outskirts _ are heavily flooded, and residents have fled aboard bamboo rafts and army trucks and by wading through waist-deep water. Eight other districts have seen less serious flooding.

New flooding was reported Friday in the city’s southeast when a canal overflowed in a neighborhood on the outer parts of Sukhumvit Road. And high tides briefly touched riverside areas closer to the city’s central business districts of Silom and Sathorn. But the day passed without major incident.

“It is clear that although the high tides haven’t reached 2.5 meters (8.2 feet), it was high enough to prolong the suffering of those living outside of the flood walls and to threaten those living behind deteriorating walls,” Bangkok Gov. Sukhumbhand Paribatra said.

The flood walls protecting much of the inner city are 8.2 feet high, and Saturday’s high tide was expected to reach 8.5 feet (2.6 meters).

International charity Save the Children said it was concerned that crocodiles and snakes were lurking in stagnant floodwaters it said are growing filthier by the day.

“Every day we see children playing in the water, bathing or wading through it trying to make their way to dry ground,” said Annie Bodmer-Roy, the group’s spokeswoman in Thailand.

The aid group said many families have been left without access to running water or clean toilets.

“There is a very real risk of waterborne or communicable diseases such as diarrhea and skin infections taking hold if families can’t maintain basic standards of hygiene,” Bodmer-Roy said. “It is essential that the risks facing children in this crisis are understood and steps taken to keep them safe.”

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Heralding a splash of good news on jobs, President Barack Obama on Wednesday praised a series of companies that have promised to hire 25,000 veterans or military spouses within two years, calling it a sign of patriotism and business savvy. He pushed his economic agenda anew to a military audience, this time with first lady Michelle Obama at his side.

“We ask you to fight, to sacrifice, to risk your lives for your country,” Obama told an audience of thousands of people at Joint Base Langley-Eustis. “The last thing you should have to do is fight for a job when you come home. Not here. Not in the United States of America.”

In this military setting, Obama’s pitch for his jobs bill was far less partisan than it has been across his bus tour of North Carolina and Virginia. He didn’t target at length the Republican lawmakers who have voted against his plan, promising more broadly to keep pushing Congress to pass a bill that’s now been broken into pieces.

The president’s day-long swing through Virginia does, however, have deep political undertones. Obama won the traditionally Republican-leaning state in 2008, but his poll numbers here are down, and some of the state’s high-profile Democrats are staying away from the president’s events.

The final day of Obama’s bus tour had a different feel primarily because the Obamas were together as the president campaigned for his ideas and, in turn, for his re-election. The president and Mrs. Obama made a surprise stop at a roadside pumpkin patch, scooping up some orange and white pumpkins, apples and peanuts.

Then they stopped for lunch at Anna’s Pizza and Italian Kitchen, having a meal with four veterans from different parts of the nation who had attended the earlier event at the base.

In their comments, Obama and the first lady both sought to assure veterans and their families that the country was behind them and that employers are, too. The American Logistics Association, which includes major companies like Tyson Foods Inc. and Coca-Cola Co., is pledging to hire 25,000 people by the end of 2013.

Michelle Obama called it the largest coordinated effort by the private sector to hire veterans that the nation has seen in years.

Mrs. Obama is leading a national campaign to rally the country around its veterans.

The president said that every company should want to hire veterans because of their leadership experience, mastery of cutting-edge technology and other skills. Obama is asking Congress to approve separate tax credits worth thousands of dollars for businesses that hire veterans who’ve been out of work for at least six months, including those with disabilities free 3-in-1 credit report.

As Obama has been traveling, lawmakers back in Washington were taking the first steps to break his nearly $450 billion jobs bill into pieces for possible votes. It’s the only way elements of the measure stand a chance of passing, given that Senate Republicans blocked action on the full package last week.

The bus trip has given the president the opportunity to promote elements of his jobs plan in places the White House says would benefit most should the measures pass.

Obama has spoken at high schools and community colleges where the administration says new spending would prevent teacher layoffs, as well as a small, regional area airport near Asheville, N.C., where Obama pressed for government funds to renovate an outdated runway.

Wednesday’s stops were following a similar pattern.

Obama has proposed a Returning Heroes tax credit of up to $5,600 for businesses that hire unemployed veterans who have been out of work for six months or more, as well as a Wounded Warriors tax credit of nearly $10,000 for unemployed veterans with service-related disabilities who also have been looking for work for at least six months.

“When I first proposed this idea in a joint session of Congress, people stood up and applauded on both sides of the aisle,” Obama said about tax credits to encourage hiring of veterans. “So when it comes for a vote in the Senate, I expect to get votes from both sides of the aisle. Don’t just applaud about it. Vote for it.”

Obama was on his way to North Chesterfield, Va., where he was to speak at a local fire station. He was returning to Washington later Wednesday.

Republicans have criticized Obama’s bus trip as being more focused on selling the president’s re-election than solving the country’s economic woes. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday: “”Let’s park the campaign bus, put away the talking points, and do something to address this jobs crisis.”

Top Virginia Democrats, including Sens. Mark Warner and Jim Webb, are not expected to appear with the president Wednesday, nor is Tim Kaine, the former governor and chairman of the Democratic National Committee, who is running to replace the retiring Webb.

However, Virginia’s popular Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell did meet with the president Wednesday morning at Joint Base Langley-Eustis.

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