Stories related to: US economy

After enduring tepid holiday sales, retailers are happily awaiting $8 billion from shoppers with unused gift cards—because only then can sellers claim the added revenue, BusinessWeek reports. But some US states say that their unclaimed-property laws enable them to extract a piece of the left-over card pie. What's really up for grabs is revenue from millions of cards that are lost or forgotten and go unspent. More »

The vast majority of Americans are convinced the nation is sinking into a recession—but most are not feeling the pinch themselves and have no plans to tighten their belts just yet, according to a Los Angeles Times/ Bloomberg poll. A year ago a similar poll showed widespread confidence that the economy was in good shape.  More »

Ford Motor Co. said job cuts and plant closings helped slash its fourth quarter losses to $2.75 billion, Bloomberg reports, less than half of what they were a year ago. But, adds  the Wall Street Journal, the company plans to reduce its workforce by at least another 13,000 jobs by the end of the first quarter through buyouts and attrition. More »

Get ready for that glow to wear off: The good feeling on Capitol Hill over a stimulus package will end as soon as the first deal is done, with Republicans and Democrats digging in on various economic cures. The next legislative round, Politico reports, will likely see GOPers fighting to extend tax cuts and Dems pushing a huge infrastructure package. More »

The subprime crisis has nothing on the economic implosion hitting Second Life’s virtual economy, the Wall Street Journal reports. Linden Labs has shut down most of the banks in its online game, cutting users off from real-life cash they'd invested. That caused a very real bank run, with avatars swarming to ATMs, sometimes to find them disabled. More »

President Bush pushed his fiscal stimulus plan with lawmakers today and vowed the bipartisan group will find "common ground," the Washington Post reports. The economic boost—which he set at $150 billion—will not kick in overnight, he warned, but said congressional leaders must reach an accord in 3 weeks. That means checks would reach taxpayers and businesses in 5 or 6 months, analysts say. More »

Stock markets around the world continued to hemorrhage today on worries the US would slide into recession, prompting finance ministers to warn that the slump is threatening EU growth. They revised forecasts downward for the 15-member EU, reports Bloomberg. “There is great concern about the financial crisis,” said the Belgian finance minister. More »

Super Bowl ads reveal the economic tenor of our times, MSNBC reports. Boom times spark creative commercials, like Apple's famed Ridley Scott-directed "1984" plug, which aired as economic confidence was rising. “Every year it really does mirror the biggest trends that year—what’s happening in the economy and what’s happening in the culture,” says an Adweek critic. More »

Markets across Asia and Europe fell sharply today on fears of a looming US recession and a lack of confidence in Bush’s $145 billion economic rescue plan, reports Bloomberg. Japan's Nikkei was off 3.9% and the Hong Kong Seng Index fell 3.5%, the most since Sept. 11, 2001. In Europe, the Dow Jones Stoxx 600 slid 5.6% by midday. More »

Some Americans are outraged about illegal immigrants crossing the Mexican border, but the New York Times' Maureen Dowd thinks that the breech of some financial boundaries are of greater concern. "Who’s going to own the American economy?" she asks, pointing to oil-rich countries taking advantage of the weak dollar to snap up US assets. More »

With consumer confidence skidding as the economy continues to spiral downward, retailers are reconsidering expansion, reducing staff, and trimming inventory, the Wall Street Journal reports. Analysts say 2008 could be the worst year for retail sales since 1991, and one economist warns that the early going “will feel like a recession to many people even if we technically avoid one.” More »

Overseas sales expansion and reduced labor costs over the next three years will bring “significant” profit increases to General Motors, CEO Rick Wagoner told analysts yesterday. Wagoner also asked investors for patience as share prices continue slipping in a worsening US economy, reports the Wall Street Journal. He said production cuts could accelerate if sales slow further. More »

IBM, already weathering the economic storm that’s bedeviled many other major US companies, said sales overseas, especially in Europe and developing nations, would help it overcome trying economic conditions at home in 2008, reports the Wall Street Journal. The computer services giant said it expects annual per share earnings between $8.20 and $8.30, more than analysts had projected. More »

Signs the housing market black hole was worsening and pulling down the rest of the economy spurred the DJIA to slide another 3% yesterday as investors decided a federal rescue plan was too late to help, reports the New York Times . Even reassuring words from Fed Chair Ben Bernanke that the economy was “extraordinarily resilient,” did little to ease concerns. More »

Ben Bernanke insists he won’t take sides in a congressional fray over how to revive the nation’s flat-lining economy. But the Fed chief says he will support an economic stimulus package—be it GOP tax cuts or Democrats' increased spending—as long as it is quick and temporary, the New York Times reports. Lawmakers are scrambling to devise ways to ward off a recession, and Bernanke testifies before a House panel tomorrow. More »

America’s spirits are sinking along with the economy, a new poll says. The Reuters/Zogby mood index fell from 97.3 to 94.2 this month, the lowest mark since polling began in July. The poll found that 48% of Americans expect a recession, up from 43% last month, and two-thirds think the US is headed in the wrong direction. More »

The Federal Reserve's regional business survey—released today, ahead of chief Ben Bernanke's appearance tomorrow before Congress—shows economic activity increasing more slowly, thanks to "disappointing" holiday sales. Some analysts think the survey—nicknamed the Beige Book—is evidence for a general economic slowdown, reports Bloomberg. "We are pretty much on the knife's edge'' of a recession, says one economist. More »

Mitt Romney campaigned in Michigan as a favorite son, but he beat John McCain by persuading voters he could bring jobs back to the beleaguered state, the Wall Street Journal reports. Romney sold himself as a business executive who could end Michigan's  "one-state recession." He was quick to jump on McCain's suggestion that lost jobs "are not coming back," and his aggressive optimism struck a resounding chord . More »

You can go home again, Mitt Romney is finding in Michigan, where the GOP presidential candidate has adopted a softer approach as he vies for a badly needed primary victory in the state where he was born and raised and his father was governor. Voters are responding to the more personal approach, and polls show him gaining ground against John McCain. He's telling Michigan residents he shares their pain, and, for a change, he seems sincere, Politico says. More »

It may already be too late to quickly stop the economic tailspin triggered by the implosion of the housing market and booming energy prices, several experts believe, reports the New York Times . Perhaps the best that can be done is to make the crunch hurt a little less. “The question is not whether we will have a recession, but how deep and prolonged it will be,” said one analyst. More »