CIA's economic briefs for Obama as concern over crisis grows

The CIA has started a practice of preparing a daily 'Economic Intelligence Brief' for president Barack Obama as US intelligence agencies suggest that the economic crisis is replacing terrorism as the greater threat to American security, a news report said on Thursday.
 
The global economic crisis has taken center stage in the intelligence community. A recent annual threat assessment produced by the Office of the director of National Intelligence suggested that the economic crisis is replacing terrorism as the greater threat to US national interests.

The CIA's role in producing the report underlined the level of anxiety within the administration over how rapidly the economic downturn is spreading, as well as its potential to hobble foreign governments and trigger instability among US
allies.

CIA director Leon E Panetta considers the global economic crisis to be a major threat to national security, leading the agency to create a daily Economic Intelligence Brief for president Obama, The Washington Times said on Thursday.
 
President Obama and senior administration officials have begun receiving the daily CIA report on the global economic crisis in addition to briefings on terrorist threats and other national security issues.
 
"The intelligence community, with the CIA in the lead, is producing a publication each day focusing on global economic issues," Panetta was quoted as saying by the US daily.