Cost of financial rescue continues to shrink

The government's effort to extend aid to the financial industry, including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, appears to be much less expensive than previously thought. Officials at the Treasury Department estimated that the tab will equal about $89 billion. The figure includes the Troubled Asset Relief Program, loan guarantees by the Federal Housing Administration, and the Federal Reserve's effort to bolster the commercial-paper market and buy mortgage-backed securities.

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