Fitch Ratings on Tuesday boosted the credit outlook on American Airlines and its corporate parent because of the carrier's efforts to reduce its debt load.

Fitch raised its outlook on the airline and AMR Corp. to "Positive" from "Stable," signaling that a ratings upgrade is possible, but kept their issuer default ratings at "B-". AMR's senior unsecured debt rating is "CCC," while American Airlines' secured bank credit facility is at "BB-".

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NextStudent Encourages Recent Graduates Who May Be Having Trouble Making Their Student Loan Payments to Take Advantage ...

Students who graduated in May with Federal Stafford Loans may be having to adjust their budget to accommodate monthly student loan payments as six-month grace periods end sometime this month. Recent graduates who are still looking for work or who received a lower-than-expected entry-level salary may be having trouble finding the room in their budget to meet a new monthly expense from student loans going into repayment. NextStudent, a leading Phoenix-based education funding company, urges graduates who may have trouble making their student loan payments to contact their lenders about their deferment and forbearance options, which allow borrowers to temporarily reduce or postpone their student loan payments without compromising their credit score or defaulting on their student loans.

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How To Save $100

How to save $100 a week Getting your budget under control can seem like an overwhelming task, especially if you have piles and piles of high-interest credit card debt bludgeoning your savings account. Much advertising out there promises quick-fixes to your financial dilemmas, but rarely addresses specific things you can do to start making an immediate difference. Believe it or not, you can save $100 in one week in just a few steps. Buy no-name brands at the grocery story Approximate savings: $20 Today, no-name or grocery store brands are just as good as the real thing. In fact, in many cases, grocery stores are opting to go with private-label products and selling them at cheaper prices. More often than not, the grocery store brands are exactly the same product as the big-name brand -- just in a different wrapper.

Fitch Put GMAC on Rating Watch Negative

Fitch Ratings on Wednesday said it placed the "BB+" long-term issuer default ratings for GMAC LLC, the financial-services company formerly controlled by General Motors Corp., and its subsidiaries on rating watch negative.

Fitch said the review reflects the continuing pressures on the company's residential mortgage subsidiary, Residential Capital LLC, also known as ResCap.

Fitch said it expects to complete its review of both GMAC and ResCap in the next four to six weeks.

Besides the long-term issuer default rating, Fitch also is reviewing GMAC's "B" short-term issuer default rating, "BB+" senior unsecured rating and "B" short-term debt rating.

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