Retail Sales Sank in February

'Slow motion' recession will continue to pare jobs

(NEWSER) - US jobs are eroding and they're unlikely to rebound until late 2009, reports the New York Times. May’s 5.5% unemployment rate is a point higher than a year ago and the 9.7% underemployed rate is up from 8.3% in May 2007, reports the Labor Department—which tomorrow releases a report expected to show a decline of 60,000 jobs in June. More»

Ignore the political crowd, the president's been great for business

(NEWSER) - President Obama doesn't get much political credit for it, but the numbers show his economic policies have been a resounding success. Since he took office, the S&P 500 is up 41%, credit spreads have narrowed, commodity prices have surged, and housing prices have stabilized, writes Mike Dorning of Bloomberg . GDP grew 5.9% in the fourth quarter, far more than analysts predicted, and job losses have slowed. More»

(NEWSER) - Our long national nightmare could soon be over: Top economic forecasters expect the recession to end by the second half of this year, Reuters reports. In a new survey, experts predict the GDP will shrink by 2.8% this year but edge up 1.9% in 2010. Even so, economists add that the unemployment rate could peak at 10% early next year. More»

As prices rise, wages fall and unemployment jumps, spending growth has stalled

(NEWSER) - The current economic crisis is shaping up to be different than others Americans have weathered in the past 20 years in an important respect, the Washington Post reports: consumer spending, which the nation could always count on to propel the economy through, has stalled. Real spending, the catalyst behind 70% of GDP, has been flat or down since June, and economists predict the third quarter will show the first decline in spending since 1990-1991. More»

Commerce Department revision shows healthier growth

(NEWSER) - GDP growth was higher than initially reported in the second quarter, the Wall Street Journal reports. Commerce Department revisions put the increase at a seasonally adjusted 3.3% annual rate—the original estimate was 1.9%. Businesses decreased their inventories less than previously thought. At the same time, exports rose more than thought, while imports fell more. More»