recession

Did Bankers Go to Jail for Causing Great Depression?

Jan 30, 2011 2:40 PM CST

Did Bankers Go to Jail for Causing Great Depression?

No, although a couple were charged and some were embarrassed

(Newser) - The government could soon prosecute a few Wall Streeters who allegedly played a role in the financial crisis, and the commission that uncovered those at fault was modeled on a similar probe after the Great Depression. So did anyone who precipitated that collapse ever go to jail? Nope, writes Brian...

Feds Ready to Prosecute
in Financial Meltdown

Jan 25, 2011 7:45 AM CST

Feds Ready to Prosecute in Financial Meltdown

Inquiry panel will name names on Thursday

(Newser) - It might finally be time to pay for a handful of Wall Streeters, as the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission prepares to name names for possible prosecution, insiders tell the Huffington Post . The panel, which will release three separate reports on Thursday, is turning several cases over to state and federal...

Recession Over
for US Firms,
Not Workers

ANALYSIS

Jan 19, 2011 6:49 AM CST

Recession Over for US Firms, Not Workers

US jobless rate higher than competitors despite soaring profits

(Newser) - The US recession is over—at least, for businesses. US workers are still mired in it. Unlike its economic competitors, America's profits have bounced back to above 2007 levels, but the unemployment rate is higher than in Britain or Russia and much higher than in Germany, Japan, or China, notes...

10 Companies
That'll Be Dead
by 2012

Jan 18, 2011 12:14 PM CST

10 Companies That'll Be Dead by 2012

Even household names like Sara Lee unlikely to survive

(Newser) - The economic crisis can be blamed for the death of quite a few large companies already—think Circuit City, Northwest Airlines, and Countrywide—so which ones can we expect to go bye-bye this year? Here are 10 American companies that seem unlikely to survive, from 24/7 Wall St. via Daily...

Recession's Latest Casualty: Wages, Falling Fast, May Never Recover

Wages Falling Fast—
and Might Not Come Back

Jan 11, 2011 9:30 AM CST

Wages Falling Fast— and Might Not Come Back

This consequence of the recession hearkens back to Depression

(Newser) - More bad news for the unemployed: You may very well return to the workforce, but it will likely be at a significantly lower wage than you were earning before. The Wall Street Journal offers up the stories of workers who went, in one case, from a $150,000-per-year money manager...

US Abortion Rate Stalls,
May Be on Rise Again

Jan 11, 2011 8:25 AM CST

US Abortion Rate Stalls, May Be on Rise Again

After declining for years, a plateau has been reached

(Newser) - After falling for almost two decades, the number of abortions being performed in the US appears to have plateaued, possibly another consequence of the continuing recession. The abortion rate among US women has also stalled its decline, the Washington Post reports. A new survey out today found “essentially no...

A Third of Working Families
Live in Near-Poverty

Dec 21, 2010 7:55 AM CST

A Third of Working Families Live in Near-Poverty

Recession has hurt more than just the unemployed

(Newser) - Recession lamenters often focus on the unemployed, but the employed are taking a beating, too. Nearly one in three working families in America is now considered low income, meaning they earn less than twice the official poverty threshold, according to a report released today from the Working Poor Families Project....

Paying Restaurant Tab
the New Moment of Dread

Dec 12, 2010 3:05 PM CST

Paying Restaurant Tab the New Moment of Dread

Gracious habits left with George W. Bush

(Newser) - It used to be that one could go out for dinner with friends, eat, drink, and still be quite merry about splitting the tab. These days, however, the moment the bill arrives is the tense moment of truth: Who made do with PBR while the other slammed martinis, and who's...

2010's Least Amazing Big Deals

Dec 5, 2010 7:32 PM CST

2010's Least Amazing Big Deals

10 most overrated things of the year

(Newser) - We're officially in that always-fun time of year: The season for "best of" lists. And while Newser is sure to present plenty of lists that round up the best of 2010 , we can't help but slip in a few that focus on the worst. Courtesy of Mark Juddery, author...

US Corporate Profits
Reach Record High

what recession?

Nov 23, 2010 5:13 PM CST

US Corporate Profits Reach Record High

But don't expect hiring to follow

(Newser) - Recession or no, US corporate profits hit an all-time high of $1.66 trillion in the last quarter, reports the New York Times . It's the highest figure since the government began tracking the stat more than 60 years ago, though it trails the record set in the third quarter of...

9 Great Products
Launched in Downturns

Nov 20, 2010 3:41 PM CST

9 Great Products Launched in Downturns

Recessions don't kill innovation

(Newser) - Who says the worst recession since the 1930s means you can't debut a great product? The Huffington Post lists 9 hugely successful ones launched in tough economic times:

iPod: Apple unveiled it less than 2 months after the September 11 attacks, amid the resulting recession.
Microsoft Office: Bill Gates launched

...

Jobless Benefits Extension
Fails in House

Nov 18, 2010 4:39 PM CST

Jobless Benefits Extension Fails in House

They could expire at the end of November

(Newser) - A vote to extend federally funded unemployment benefits for three months failed to get enough support in the House today, meaning that current benefits could expire on November 30. The bill required a two-thirds vote to reauthorize funding and faced an uncertain future in the Senate had it passed, reports...

Guy Offers $25K to First Person Who Gets Him a Job

Nov 16, 2010 10:47 AM CST

Guy Offers $25K to First Person Who Gets Him a Job

As long as your job lead pays $225K, you're set

(Newser) - Having trouble finding a job? Perhaps you should consider Scott Avidon's approach: He's offering $25,000 to the first person who helps him get one. The 45-year-old father of two, laid off six months ago, tells the Huffington Post that he's been "aggressively looking" for jobs—networking, applying online,...

Secret to
Recovery:
Optimism

opinion

Nov 5, 2010 1:54 PM CDT

Secret to Recovery: Optimism

Obama, Boehner must promote American confidence

(Newser) - There’s a big economic problem that’s been keeping a low profile: American confidence, writes David Smick in the Washington Post . “Between $2.5 trillion and $4 trillion of private capital is waiting on the sidelines to ‘reliquify’ a new era of American confidence and innovation,”...

Recession Is Not
Hurting Marriage

OPINION

Oct 13, 2010 1:25 PM CDT

Recession Is Not Hurting Marriage

Op-ed: The statistics are easy to misread

(Newser) - Despite a spate of recent reports to the contrary, the nation's economic trouble isn't hurting the institution of marriage, writes a UPenn professor in the New York Times . Over the past century, "marriage and divorce rates have remained remarkably immune to the ups and downs of the business cycle,...

'Recovery' Looking Like
10-Year Recession

Oct 13, 2010 7:38 AM CDT

'Recovery' Looking Like 10-Year Recession

Uncertainty is the 'new normal' in America

(Newser) - For many Americans, "recovery" feels a lot like recession—and it may take a decade for that to change, finds the New York Times . At the current rate of job creation, for instance, it would take nine years to recapture jobs lost thus far. Home prices, meanwhile, are down...

US Won't Get All
Jobs Back Until 2020

AT CURRENT RATE

Oct 10, 2010 10:48 AM CDT

US Won't Get All Jobs Back Until 2020

And we're likely to hit another recession before then

(Newser) - The US has in 2010 added 613,000 jobs as of September—a not-so-bad average of 68,111 per month. But at that rate, it will be 2020 before the US regains the 8.36 million total jobs lost in the Great Recession. That would break the post-WWII record of...

Marriage Rates Fall:
Who Can Afford It?

Sep 29, 2010 6:35 AM CDT

Marriage Rates Fall: Who Can Afford It?

Census Finds Record Gap Between Rich and Poor

Young people hit hardest

(Newser) - The income gap between the richest and poorest Americans grew last year to its widest amount on record as young adults and children in particular struggled to stay afloat in the recession. The top-earning 20% of Americans—those making more than $100,000 each year—received 49.4% of all...

Why America Is So Angry and Miserable