In Recession, Sales of Sex Toys Boom

Former Fed chief takes heat on Capitol Hill

(NEWSER) - Alan Greenspan is taking more heat on Capitol Hill today as a three-day series of hearings begins on the economic meltdown. “What we tried to do was the best we could with the data that we had,” the former Fed chief told the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission. “Did we make mistakes? Of course we made mistakes." But he defended the central bank's efforts and said it was "quite active in pursuing consumer protections for mortgage borrowers," reports Bloomberg . More»

Tenuous 3.5% growth is best showing in two years

(AP) - The economy grew at a 3.5% pace in the third quarter, the best showing in two years, fueled by government-supported spending on cars and homes. The Commerce Department's report today delivered the strongest signal yet that the economy entered a new, though fragile, phase of recovery and that the worst recession since the 1930s has ended. More»

Recession isn't over as far as consumers are concerned

(NEWSER) - If the recession is indeed waning, nobody told consumers. Retailers of every kind reported lousy sales for the quarter ended Aug. 1, the Wall Street Journal reports. Target’s same-store sales fell 6.2%, Home Depot’s dropped 9.1% and Saks’ plummeted a whopping 15.5%. And with unemployment, stagnant wages, and tight credit squeezing shoppers, executives don’t expect to see improvement until next spring. More»

(NEWSER) - If you’re the glass-half-full type, recent economic indicators look good: Unemployment fell last month, the savings rate is up, and productivity hit a 6-year high. But that same data proves that ordinary people aren’t likely to feel the good vibrations anytime soon, the Washington Post reports. “It's going to be a recovery only a statistician can love,” said a Wells Fargo economist. More»

(AP) - The economy is finally beginning to show signs of stabilizing in some parts of the US, bolstering hopes of a broader-based recovery this year. A Federal Reserve snapshot of economic conditions issued today finds that most of the Fed's 12 regions indicated either that "the pace of decline has moderated" or "that activity has begun to stabilize, albeit at a low level." The improved assessment raises hope that the recession, which started in December 2007, is drawing to a close. More»