Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

News Sections

Newser Specials

Stories related to: US economy

Stories

Stories 21 - 40 of 219

<< Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... 11 Next >>

March 2008
- GDP Growth Weakest Since '02
  
  newser | MarketWatch | Mar 27, 08 12:46 PM CDT
  
  The US economy sputtered—as expected—in the fourth quarter of 2007, growing at the slowest rate since 2002, MarketWatch reports. Estimated growth of the US gross domestic product was 0.6% for the last three months of 2007, matching economists' forecasts. Consumer spending grew 2.3%, and exports increased 6.5%, both beating the Commerce Department’s predictions. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • credit crisis • consumer spending • Commerce Department • inventory growth • US gross domestic product
- Feds Must Ward Off Stagnation, Clinton Says
  
  newser | Wall Street Journal | Mar 27, 08 11:15 AM CDT
  
  The government should step into the mortgage mess on a broader scale, Hillary Clinton told the Wall Street Journal yesterday, suggesting monetary policy alone can’t ignite a recovery and warning that procrastination could lead to stagnation similar to Japan’s weary economy. Clinton said the Federal Housing Administration should buy troubled mortgages in combination with a program to auction defaulted loans. More »
  
  Tags
  
  Barack Obama • Hillary Clinton • John McCain • US economy • Federal Reserve • credit crisis • mortgage crisis • Henry Paulson • Federal Housing Administration
- Boomers Move Back Home
  
  newser | Associated Press | Mar 24, 08 3:06 PM CDT
  
  Young people have long fled recessionary job markets by moving back home, but the current crisis has a new demographic scurrying there: the middle-aged. "This is not like, 'OK, my son just graduated from college and needs to move back in' type of thing," says one financial planner, who has seen more adult children leaning on parents for everything from rent to groceries. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • recession • subprime crisis • unemployment • parents • housing • Generation X • baby boomers
- Fed Cuts Bank Discount Rate to Boost Liquidity
  
  newser | Associated Press | Mar 16, 08 7:21 PM CDT
  
  The Federal Reserve raced to buck up an anxious financial sector today by cutting its discount rate to banks by a quarter point, to 3.25%, the AP reports. It also created a new lending facility to aid investment banks with short-term loans. The moves are "designed to bolster market liquidity and promote orderly market functioning," the Fed said. "Liquid well-functioning markets are essential for the promotion of economic growth." More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • Federal Reserve • Ben Bernanke • interest rate cut • liquidity • federal loans
- Consumer Prices Flat in Feb.
  
  newser | Wall Street Journal | Mar 14, 08 8:41 AM CDT
  
  Consumer prices were flat for February, pleasantly surprising economists who expected a 0.2% increase, reports the Wall Street Journal . This morning’s consumer price index eases concerns that inflation is accelerating as the economy slows, and it gives the Federal Reserve more reason to float a large interest rate cut next week. A drop in energy prices was credited with the inflation relief, likely to be short-lived as this month's record oil and gas prices are factored into the next reports. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • oil price • gas prices • inflation • economy • food prices • consumer prices • core inflation • Consumer Price Index • energy costs
- Fed Pours $200B Into Global Credit Relief Push
  
  newser | Associated Press | Mar 11, 08 10:15 AM CDT
  
  The Fed will inject huge quantities of cash into financial markets as part of a coordinated global attack on the credit crisis, Ben Bernanke announced today. The central bank will loan out another $200 billion, this time on a 28-day basis rather than overnight, the AP reports. The effort will coordinate with the European Central Bank and the central banks of Canada, England, and Switzerland. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • Federal Reserve • credit crisis • Ben Bernanke • interest rate • liquidity • Bank of England • European Central Bank • Royal Bank of Canada
- Shops Shut as Wind Goes Out of Sales
  
  newser | Associated Press | Mar 11, 08 3:59 AM CDT
  
  Soaring gas prices and a still-boiling housing crisis are taking their toll on America's smaller retailers, with store bankruptcies and vacancy rates rising steadily as customers avoid impulse-buys that once fueled the industry's rapid expansion, reports AP. Vacancies hover between 7% and 8%, up from 5% just six months ago—and some analysts predict rates as high as 12.5% by the end of 2008. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • recession • gas prices • housing crisis • retail sales • weakening economy • retail stores • retail shopping • shoppers
- Commercial Real Estate Will Slow, Not Tank
  
  newser | Wall Street Journal | Mar 10, 08 9:18 AM CDT
  
  The commercial real estate market has slowed dramatically, but won’t rival the housing implosion, reports the Wall Street Journal . Prices will likely fall just 20%, compared with 40%-plus for homes in some markets, and commercial property owners—unlike record numbers of homeowners facing foreclosure—have largely been able to keep mortgages current. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • recession • credit crisis • housing crisis • foreclosure • real estate values • commercial real estate
- Part-Time Work Jumps 16% as Many Jobs Contract
  
  newser | Wall Street Journal | Mar 8, 08 12:10 PM CST
  
  Tough economic times—and a drop in full-time jobs in some sectors—are pushing more people into part-time work, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Labor Department says 16% more workers—some 4.79 million people—are working part-time jobs this year than last, the highest total since 1993. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • Wal-Mart • employment • job market • Labor Department • workers • US workers • below the line workers
- Oil Hits $104; OPEC Won't Budge
  
  newser | Wall Street Journal | Mar 5, 08 3:57 PM CST
  
  Crude oil rose to a record $104.52 a barrel today after OPEC decided to hold production steady. “The oil market is currently stable,” said Saudi Arabia’s oil minister. “There is no need to increase even one barrel of oil.” The cartel blamed sky-high prices on “tremendous speculation,” the Wall Street Journal reports. Oil futures were up $5 on the day. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • oil price • recession • oil • Saudi Arabia • OPEC • oil supply • commodities exchange • supply and demand
- Gift Cards Not Looking So Sharp
  
  newser | MarketWatch | Mar 4, 08 11:00 AM CST
  
  Consumers holding Sharper Image gift cards are out a collective $25 million after the gadget retailer stopped honoring the cards when it filed for bankruptcy in February, MarketWatch reports. With the shaky economy likely to produce more bankruptcies over the next year or two, consumers would be wise to redeem other cards they may be hoarding. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • bankruptcy • retailing • Chapter 11 • Sharper Image • gift cards
- One Million Going Bankrupt
  
  newser | Reuters | Mar 4, 08 4:28 AM CST
  
  More than a million Americans are headed for bankruptcy in 2008, mostly due to crippling household debt, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute. There were 76,120 bankruptcy filings last month—a 37% increase over February last year, and the biggest monthly spike since the change in personal bankruptcy laws in 2005. February's filings were up 15% over January. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • subprime crisis • bankruptcy • Chapter 13
- US Car Sales Sink in Slow Economy
  
  newser | Bloomberg | Mar 3, 08 9:45 PM CST
  
  A tumbling US economy hit Ford, General Motors, Chrysler, and Toyota today as all four posted declining sales for last month, Bloomberg reports. Chrysler fell 14% as Ford dropped nearly 7% and GM suffered almost a 20% drop in light truck sales. "Primarily it's driven by the weak economy,'' one analyst said. "It's been difficult for people to refinance and get credit.'' More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • gas prices • auto industry • General Motors • Ford • Chrysler • Toyota • auto sales
- McCain Outlines More Specific Fiscal Stance
  
  newser | Wall Street Journal | Mar 3, 08 12:45 PM CST
  
  How would John McCain run the economy, really? In an interview with the Wall Street Journal , the candidate tried to answer that question, positioning himself as a fiscally responsible defender of the Bush tax cuts. But the candidate’s tax proposals don’t quite add up, the Journal notes, and he contradicted his own website’s statements on Social Security. More »
  
  Tags
  
  John McCain • US economy • McCain 2008 • Social Security • tax cuts • budget deficit • economic plans • domestic policy • balanced budget
- Corn May Be Recipe for Disaster
  
  newser | Los Angeles Times | Mar 3, 08 12:05 PM CST
  
  The US is becoming so dependent on corn that a drought would have catastrophic effects that would ripple throughout the economy, reports the LA Times. Corn is essential as staple livestock feed, artificial sweetener, and a basic component of ethanol. A "corn shock" could lead to $5 gas and $3.50 eggs, economists warn. "We are replacing price volatility from the Middle East with Midwestern weather price volatility," said one analyst. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • ethanol • corn • wheat • grain • corn shock • Soy • corn belt • Earth Policy Institute
February 2008
- Consumer Spending Stalls Again
  
  newser | Bloomberg | Feb 29, 08 12:03 PM CST
  
  Consumer spending rose more than expected in January—but only because prices did so as well, Bloomberg reports. Adjusted for inflation, spending remained flat for the second straight month. With fuel costs rising, banks restricting loans, and property values falling, “consumers are clearly hard-pressed to maintain their standard of living and are cutting back,” says an analyst. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • Federal Reserve • recession • inflation • consumer spending • fuel costs • consumer confidence • property values
- Dollar's Slide Pushing Oil Prices Higher
  
  newser | Bloomberg | Feb 29, 08 7:21 AM CST
  
  The dollar continued its fall as unrelentingly dismal economic data eroded confidence in the US economy, Bloomberg reports. The greenback set a new low of $1.52 against the euro this morning and hit a three-year bottom against the Japanese yen. Oil surged more than $2 a barrel to $103.05 in Asian trading before closing at $102.92. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • recession • gas prices • oil • US dollar • crude oil • euro • yen
- Bernanke Signals New Rate Cuts
  
  newser | Wall Street Journal | Feb 27, 08 9:15 AM CST
  
  Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke today said that the board stands ready to cut interest rates again to give the economy "adequate insurance against downside risks," reports the Wall Street Journal. The move, which follows 2.25% in cuts to the key rate since September, is widely expected at the Fed's March 18 meeting. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • Federal Reserve • housing market • Ben Bernanke • inflation • credit market • interest rate cut • testimony • energy prices • House Financial Services Committee • Federal Open Market Committee
- Economists Lean Closer to the R-Word
  
  newser | Associated Press | Feb 25, 08 7:09 PM CST
  
  An panel of US economists leaned closer to predicting recession today after grappling with a slew of scary data, the AP reports. More than half of analysts at the National Association for Business Economics maintained that a downturn is still unlikely, but 45% expected recession in 2008; only a quarter saw a 35% chance of recession in a report last September. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • Federal Reserve • recession • credit market • GDP • economic stimulus package • economist
- Dollar Gains Slightly Against the Euro
  
  newser | Associated Press | Feb 25, 08 5:34 AM CST
  
  European markets saw the US dollar edge higher against the euro, yen and British pound today as traders looked for clues as to whether the US economy would avoid a recession, reports the Associated Press. Today’s report on January sales of existing homes will likely cast some light on whether the subprime virus will continue to drag the economy down. More »
  
  Tags
  
  US economy • US dollar • euro • housing • currency exchange • pound

Stories 21 - 40 of 219

<< Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... 11 Next >>

Today's Most Popular

Today's Stories
All Stories
Threads

Loading...

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Newser gives you more news in less time. We search for the best and most important stories all over the web, read them for you, and deliver concise and sharp summaries—along with links to the full text. Newser provides a way to stay on top of an ever-expanding horizon of news and opinion—politics, sports, business, trends, technology, personalities, crimes, and controversies. Newser keeps you not just better informed, but, with our signature graphic interface and smart condensed format, more enjoyably informed.