US Recession May Imperil Global Tourism

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• Newfound Thrift Battering Economy

  Jan 6, 09 1:51 CST
  Americans worried about the recession are stashing away cash at the highest rate in decades—but economists fear that the thrift will prolong hard times, reports the Wall Street Journal. The national savings rate has rebounded from less than zero to levels expected to hit 5% or higher this year just when consumer spending is needed most.
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• Don't Blame Fannie for Mess

  Jan 5, 09 9:11 CST
  Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the "toxic twin" housing financing behemoths blamed for setting the world on fire, were not operating any differently than the entire financial sector, Bethany McLean writes in Vanity Fair. McLean documents Fannie Mae's history starting from conception in FDR's New Deal, when it was chartered by Congress to help homeownership (Freddie Mac followed in 1970), and ending in its failure to resist the profitable subprime game.
  
  
  
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• Steel Industry Hopes Stimulus Will Forge Recovery

  Jan 2, 09 2:32 CST
  Leaders of America's sagging steel industry are hoping their operations will spearhead the economy's recovery with some major help from the US government, the New York Times reports. Steel orders have collapsed since September, causing thousands of layoffs. Execs are pushing hard for the expected stimulus package from the incoming administration to be heavy on steel-hungry infrastructure projects—and to include a "buy American" clause.
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• Shoppers Go Whole Hog for Piggy Banks

  Jan 1, 09 12:08 PM CST
  Piggy banks have been flying off the shelves this holiday season, reports Reuters. Newly frugal consumers see the pigs as symbolic of the need to save, retailers say. The savings rate across America has shot up from zero to 2.8% as worried households start to sock away cash—although economists warn that the recession will last longer if consumers cut back too much and savings rates return to the 10% level of the early '80s.
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• Dumbest Gaffes on the Economy

  Dec 31, 08 6:12 PM CST
  The men who should have been warning us about the impending financial crisis were a wee bit off the mark at times. MSNBC rounds up some of the dumbest things said:
  

  • "Subprime market problems seem likely to be contained."—Ben Bernanke, March 28, 2007
  • "The fundamentals of our economy are strong."—John McCain, Sept. 15
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