President Barack Obama inherited a U.S. economy in freefall when he took office in January and his top priority is restoring it to health.
While many Americans blame former President George W. Bush for the economic crisis, they expect Obama to fix it.
The issue has dominated Obama's agenda for his first 100 days in office, in which he rolled out a massive stimulus package and launched a push to overhaul healthcare.
He has pointed to "glimmers of hope" for an economy that has been in recession since December 2007. Experts agree the pace of decline may be slowing but predict a recovery won't start until later this year and may be anemic initially.
Americans seem willing to be patient, with nearly two-thirds of them telling pollsters they approve of the job Obama is doing. But Obama has acknowledged his ability to win a second term will likely hinge on how well the economy fares.
Here is a summary of Obama's economic plans:
STIMULUS PACKAGE
Less than a month after his inauguration, Obama signed a two-year, $787 billion economic stimulus package.
The Democratic president has predicted the plan — a mixture of public works spending projects and middle-class tax cuts — will save or create more than 3.5 million jobs.
Republicans criticized the plan's price tag and said it would bloat the deficit without doing enough to spur growth.
BUDGET
Obama in February laid out a $3.55 trillion spending blueprint for the fiscal year 2010 that begins on Oct. 1.
Labeled as overly ambitious by some, the plan urges an overhaul of the healthcare system and steps to address climate change. Obama says the measures will put the economy on a sounder footing in the long run but the costs worry some.
The budget forecast a mammoth $1.75 trillion deficit for fiscal year 2009 that would fall to $1.17 trillion in 2010.
Obama has vowed to halve within five years the more than $1 trillion deficit he inherited from President George W. Bush.
TROUBLED BANKING SYSTEM
U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner in February unveiled a plan for a public-private partnership to buy up bad debt clogging the books of troubled U.S. banks.
The plan was initially panned by Wall Street though investors more recently seem willing to give it a chance.
Still, Obama has been criticized by some for not taking a more aggressive approach on the banking sector and not moving sooner to request more money from Congress for his plan.
Many economists believe vibrant growth cannot return to the economy unless the banking system is cleansed of toxic mortgage debt. The banks' woes have crippled access to credit for consumers and businesses.
HOUSING
Aiming to stem home foreclosures, Obama has set aside $75 billion to help homeowners restructure or refinance loans.
He contends the plan will help counter a vicious cycle of defaults, plummeting home values and financial-market turmoil.
But he took heat from some critics who have charged the program would reward people who took on irresponsible risks by taking out mortgages they could not afford.
FINANCIAL REGULATION
Obama has taken early steps toward shaking up U.S. financial regulation following the upheaval triggered by debacles at Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns and AIG.
His proposals to give the government better tools to deal with failing financial firms were well received by countries at this month's Group of 20 economic summit in London.
The administration is working with Congress on a broad set of changes, including an effort to tighten credit card rules.
HEALTH CARE
Fulfilling a campaign promise to overhaul the healthcare system is one of Obama's top domestic priorities.
Obama contends that making health insurance coverage available to all Americans is a moral imperative and says revamping the system could curb the cost of entitlement programs like Medicare.
But Republicans have said the plan would lead to a massive government expansion which they liken to "Socialism."
Democratic lawmakers hope to put healthcare legislation on a fast track for passage this year.
CLIMATE CHANGE
To combat climate change, Obama wants to cut U.S. emissions through a cap-and-trade system that limits how much carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases big factories can emit.
That is the crux of a bill the U.S. Congress is weighing but it faces a tough fight in Congress.
Opponents label the legislation an energy tax, saying it would hobble the economy in the midst of a recession.
