economy

Stories 521 - 540 | << Prev   Next >>

Declines in Gift Cards, Self-Splurges Hurt Retailers

(Newser) - Naughty or nice, America’s retail stores can’t look forward to two of the holiday season’s usual boons: gift card sales and “self-gifting” splurges, MarketWatch reports. About 44% of shoppers say they will not buy gift cards this year, up from 26% last year, a marketing study...

Couples Rattled by Recession Delay Kids

Babyies too expensive in shrinking economy

(Newser) - Baby booms and busts have long been reliable economic indicators, so it's no surprise that couples facing layoffs and a tough housing market are holding off on pregnancies. Pricey fertility clinics are the first to feel couples' hesitation to reproduce. The magnitude of the economic affect on the American population...

Chinese Exports See First Drop in 7 Years

Unexpected 2.2% fall has analysts fearing major crisis for powerful economy

(Newser) - China’s exports have taken a sudden, unexpected hit from the global economic crisis, possibly an early indication that the world’s fourth-largest economy is on the verge of crisis. Exports, expected to rise at least 15%, shrunk instead by 2.2%, marking the first such fall in 7 years...

Italy Bails Out Parmesan Makers
Italy Bails Out Parmesan Makers 
Dec 10, 2008 1:10 PM CST

Italy Bails Out Parmesan Makers

Government spending $64M to save storied cheese industry

(Newser) - While the US bails out the auto industry, Italy is spending $64 million to save the makers of other wheels: parmesan cheese. Producers of the popular pasta topping have struggled for years to turn a profit, despite strong national and regional appetites. “It’s a tragic situation,” one...

Obama: I Never Discussed My Seat With Blago

Prez-elect talks policy priorities, scandal in wide-ranging interview

(Newser) - The president-elect opined on a variety of issues with the Los Angeles Times yesterday, including how his name will be announced at inauguration (Barack Hussein Obama, as per tradition):
  • Priorities: He'll start with "a serious investment" in infrastructure for "a green-energy economy."
  • Centrist Cabinet: He's not
...

Media Frenzy Makes Recession Worse
 Media Frenzy Makes 
 Recession Worse 
OPINION
Dec 8, 2008 12:37 PM CST

Media Frenzy Makes Recession Worse

Sky isn't falling for many, but barrage 'crackling with panic' makes us feel that way

(Newser) - There’s no doubt the economy is bad. The of flood sky-is-falling news stories make that abundantly clear. But the avalanche of bad news—delivered faster than ever before through myriad, ever-present media outlets—has fed upon itself, sinking all of us into a deeper state of collective panic than...

North Dakota Laughs at Your Puny Recession

Rectangular wonder has more jobs than it can fill

(Newser) - There may be a recession going on, but you wouldn’t know it by visiting North Dakota, the New York Times reports. The state budget boasts a hefty $1.2 billion surplus, auto sales are up 27%, and unemployment is just 3.4%. In fact, the sparsely populated state has...

US Lost Half-Million Jobs in Nov.
 US Lost 
 Half-Million 
 Jobs in Nov. 
Economy
Dec 5, 2008 8:24 AM CST

US Lost Half-Million Jobs in Nov.

Biggest drop in 34 years

(Newser) - November saw 553,000 Americans lose their jobs, according to a Labor Department non-farm payrolls report, the steepest drop in 34 years. The number exceeded even the grimmest predictions in Bloomberg’s survey of 73 analysts. “The labor market capsized in November,” said one economist. “The financial...

Huge Rate Cut Aims to Restart Thai Economy

Central bank surprises analysts as country forms new government

(Newser) - The Bank of Thailand today cut interest rates by 100 basis points, more than any observers expected, as the besieged nation tries to restart its economy. As Bloomberg reports, the 6-month protest that ended with the ouster of PM Somchai Wongsawat sapped exports and aggravated the pain of the global...

Obama Must Forget Agenda, Fix Economy
Obama Must Forget Agenda, Fix Economy
OPINION
Dec 1, 2008 1:55 PM CST

Obama Must Forget Agenda, Fix Economy

Now isn't the time for divisive legislative battles: Samuelson

(Newser) - When Barack Obama takes office, he’ll have to decide whether he wants to revive the economy, or pursue his policy agenda. “The two approaches are at odds,” writes Robert Samuelson in the Washington Post. Yes, Obama could say energy and health reform will improve the economy, but...

US Already a Year Into Recession: Economists

Non-traditional measurement based on employment, other statistics

(Newser) - The US economy has been in a recession since employment peaked in December 2007, a committee of economists declared today. However, MarketWatch notes, the private National Bureau of Economic Research rejects the traditional metric that recession is defined as consecutive quarters of GDP decline, opting instead to look at four...

Who's That Guy on the Local News?
Who's That
Guy on the
Local News?
Dec 1, 2008 8:25 AM CST

Who's That Guy on the Local News?

TV stations replace veteran anchors with cheaper rookies

(Newser) - Across the country, star local news anchors are signing off for good, the New York Times reports, as local network affiliates look for ways to cut costs, and find big anchor salaries tempting targets. Newscasters with more than 20 years behind the desk have been dropped in Chicago, Houston, Denver,...

Brits Turn to Sex for Cheap Thrills

Hard times encourage people to find inexpensive activities, poll finds

(Newser) - For those who can't afford to shop during the holidays, the British offer a suggestion: have sex instead. Love-making topped a list of increasingly popular cost-free activities, followed by window shopping and gossiping—which beat out sex among women—in a survey of 2,000 Brits. The findings coincide with...

Bailout Harks Back to FDR, With More Risk

'Unimaginable' spending will mean WWII-sized deficit

(Newser) - Washington's latest $1 trillion injection into the economy echoes Depression-era and WWII revival plans, but with a dangerous twist, writes Jim Puzzanghera in the Los Angeles Times. Even if the bailouts succeed, the government's mountain of debt will likely bury the next generation in high interest rates and inflation. And...

Strapped Budgets Make for Better Gifts


 Strapped Budgets 
 Make for Better Gifts 
opinion
Nov 29, 2008 4:10 PM CST

Strapped Budgets Make for Better Gifts

Use a signature gift to cut costs, give meaningfully

(Newser) - Tight budgets are forcing Americans to skirt the season's traditional buying frenzy and make gifts that put "emphasis on people, not stuff," Melissa Magsaysay writes in the Los Angeles Times. She's creating "a creative signature gift" of Ugandan beads that she's turning into bracelets: The...

Noonan: Be Thankful We Don't See This

There's no apocalypse out there

(Newser) - This Thanksgiving, Peggy Noonan is thankful for what she’s not seeing. Despite the relentless glut of negative economic news, “everything looks the same,” she writes in the Wall Street Journal. There is no one selling pencils in the street, no children lining up in bread lines. “...

Romer Will Be Summers Ally, but With a Deft Touch
Romer Will Be Summers Ally, but With a Deft Touch
analysis
Nov 28, 2008 11:59 AM CST

Romer Will Be Summers Ally, but With a Deft Touch

Pick for Council of Economic Advisers chair known for 'deft touch'

(Newser) - Relative unknown Christina Romer was a smart pick to lead Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisers, Lisa Lerer writes for Politico. The Berkeley professor is a Depression expert, and "right now, you want a business cycle stabilization chair," one colleague said. She describes herself as having “liberal...

Islam Would Bring US Out of Crisis: Qaeda Leader

New video ties terror wars to financial meltdown

(Newser) - Al-Qaeda's No. 2 leader appeared in a new video posted today calling on Americans to embrace Islam to overcome the financial meltdown, which he said was a consequence of the Sept. 11 attacks and militant strikes in Iraq and Afghanistan. Ayman al-Zawahiri's 80-minute recording also lashed out at Afghanistan's government...

Rove: Obama Has Picked a First-Rate Economic Team

Solid picks win rare praise from former Bush deputy

(Newser) - Karl Rove was pleasantly surprised by Barack Obama's choice of an economic team, the Republican analyst writes in the Wall Street Journal, singling out Tim Geithner and Larry Summers as solid picks. Geithner has played a key role in the current administration's handling of the financial crisis and will provide...

Food Banks See Spike in Demand

Former donors now need donations: bank director

(Newser) - As millions of American families gathered to give thanks for what they have, food banks and shelters struggled to cope with a spike in demand for their services. "Food bank after food bank tells me it's new faces, people they haven't seen before," says one charity spokesman in...

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