US economy

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Paulson Calls for More Housing Relief

Treasury secretary suggests aid for prime-rate borrowers

(Newser) - Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson advised the mortgage industry today to give help to millions of financially stressed homeowners whose mortgages are set to rise. His comments signal that the Bush administration is starting to push lenders to expand relief beyond subprime borrowers to homeowners with other adjustable-rate loans, reports the...

Starbucks Founder Back in CEO Saddle

Will pare back coffee giant after sales stall and stocks tumble

(Newser) - Starbucks reacted to slow sales and new competition today by bringing back founder Howard Schultz as CEO, replacing folksy chief exec Jim Donald. "We must address the challenges we face and we know what has to be done," Schultz said. Schultz vows to reignite sales by trimming back...

Unemployment Rises, May Spur Rate Cut

Weak jobs data makes Fed action likely

(Newser) - The labor market took a hit in December, with the jobless rate hitting a two-year high and payroll increases falling well short of predictions. Nonfarm payrolls rose just 18,000, much less than both November’s 115,000 and the 50,000 prognosticators expected. The gloomy numbers increase the odds...

Ford Sales Slump in December
Ford Sales Slump in December
Jan 3, 2008 1:15 PM CST

Ford Sales Slump in December

Light-vehicle sales down 9% over Dec. '06, and off 12% for all of 2007

(Newser) - Ford Motor Co. reported a 9% dip in US sales of cars and light trucks between last December and December 2007, capping off a dismal year for the company and the auto industry, the Wall Street Journal reports. Ford, which is third in US auto sales behind Toyota and leader...

Fed Remains Open to More Rate Cuts
Fed Remains Open to More Rate Cuts
Jan 2, 2008 7:33 PM CST

Fed Remains Open to More Rate Cuts

Minutes from last meeting display growing concern about markets

(Newser) - Fed officials will consider deeper rate cuts and a "substantial further easing of policy" if the turmoil in the credit and housing markets continues, according to minutes of last month's meeting. Officials displayed surprise at the extent of the housing crisis and acknowledged that market strains "could persist...

E-Commerce All Grown Up, Sales Growth Finally Slows

Internet sales set new records, but rise more slowly than last year

(Newser) - Online sales continued to out-pace traditional retailers this season, boasting a 19% spike, but fell compared to 25-30% growth rates in past seasons, the New York Times reports. While e-tailers beat the scrawny 3.6% sales growth of traditional stores, experts attribute the slowdown to the maturing of online shopping.

Venture Capitalists Predict Rebound After 2008

VCs support Clinton over Giuliani

(Newser) - After gazing into its crystal ball this month, the National Venture Capital Association has come up with a picture of a bullish post-2008, post-election future. In the prediction, the new President Clinton manages a still-reeling economy as the number of VC firms wanes and the size of the funds they...

Quality Boosts US Exports
Quality Boosts US Exports
Dec 26, 2007 12:55 PM CST

Quality Boosts US Exports

Experts credit weak dollar, manufacturing know-how for surge

(Newser) - The sinking dollar is fueling a booming export market in tractors, medical equipment, and electrical machinery, helping some US manufacturers overcome a falloff in domestic sales, reports the Washington Post. The trend may even help reduce the trade deficit: For 2007, US exports are projected to increase even more than...

Art Market Sails Over Turmoil
Art Market Sails Over Turmoil
Dec 26, 2007 6:01 AM CST

Art Market Sails Over Turmoil

Weak dollar, overseas buyers help keep prices high

(Newser) - US financial markets were in chaos this year, but the art market certainly wasn't. The expanding ranks of the super-rich, the weak dollar, and emerging connoisseurs from Russia, China, India, and the Middle East kept auction houses in fine form, the AP reports, with postwar and contemporary works—including a...

Citing US Troubles, Illegal Immigrants 'Self-Deport'

Immigrants face tougher law enforcement and worsening economy

(Newser) - More illegal immigrants in the US are "self-deporting" back to their home countries in the face of stricter immigration enforcement and a worsening economy, Reuters reports. "The situation has got so tough that there don't seem to be many options left for us," said a Mexican immigrant....

Late Shoppers Spread Some Holiday Cheer

But not enough to rescue some slumping retailers

(Newser) - Shoppers swarmed in a last-minute buying binge that will help most, but not all, retailers make the season’s sales projections. For the week ended Saturday sales rose 33% over a year ago and for the final weekend of the season were up 18.7%, reports the Los Angeles Times....

2007: Asia's Banner Year
2007: Asia's Banner Year
OPINION
Dec 24, 2007 2:19 PM CST

2007: Asia's Banner Year

Bloomberg praises those who fuel the region's return to economic power

(Newser) - Asia's economies are soaring so mightily that Bloomberg columnist William Pesek is passing out awards for Asia's big players in 2007. They range from a “Money Talks” prize, for Arab and Asian leaders who bailed out Wall Street banks, to the “Howard's End” trophy, for Australian PM Kevin...

Weaker Dollar Revamps World Economy
Weaker Dollar Revamps World Economy
Dec 24, 2007 11:04 AM CST

Weaker Dollar Revamps World Economy

Americans lose pride, buying power, but gain jobs and sales abroad

(Newser) - A declining US dollar is sparking changes worldwide, drawing jobs to the States and spurring sales of US goods, but also ending an age of rich Americans abroad and hurting economies that are pegged to the note. Its 7-year, 40% drop against the Euro is no short-term slide either, experts...

Retailers Slash Prices to Boost Slumping Season

Plagued by high gas and food prices, shoppers hold out for bargains

(Newser) - Retailers slashed prices nationwide this weekend in a bid to draw last-minute shoppers and lift a slumping holiday season, Bloomberg reports. Pressed by high gas and food prices, consumers are holding out for zero-hour deals; retailers have obliged with half-off sales and extra hours, counting on the last days before...

A Tale of 2 (Rich) Candidates
A Tale of 2 (Rich) Candidates
Dec 23, 2007 11:52 AM CST

A Tale of 2 (Rich) Candidates

Edwards, Romney draw different lessons from good fortune

(Newser) - John Edwards and Mitt Romney are both self-made millionaires who used their wealth to climb the political ladder, the New York Times reports. But Edwards is an old-school populist who chalks up the current 1920s-level income gap to Reaganesque policies eroding the middle class, while Romney thinks the key to...

World Bank Cuts China's Economy Down to Size

World Bank says the world's second-largest economy is poorer than thought

(Newser) - China's economy, predicted to become the world’s largest by 2012, actually is 40% smaller than previously estimated, the World Bank concludes, after updating the way it calculates GDP. Although China’s $5.33-trillion economy is still the second largest in the world behind the $12-trillion US, the new appraisal...

Ho-Hum Season Sees Drop in Women's Apparel Sales

With less money to spend on family, women pull back on purchasing for themselves

(Newser) - Women's spending on apparel for the first half of the Christmas season is down, alarming retailers and spawning broad worry in the industry. Experts blame a bleak economy and blah fashions for a slump of nearly 6% compared with a year ago, reports the New York Times. Men’s clothing...

Rich Getting Even Richer, Even Faster

Gap between super wealthy and rest of US grows even bigger

(Newser) - America’s economy is great, the New York Times says, if you’re already super rich. Between 2003 and 2005, America’s top 1% saw a meteoric 42.6% jump in income. The rest of us? Well, the middle fifth earned an extra 4.3%, and the bottom fifth just...

Greenspan: Odds Rising for Recession

Former Fed chief says US economy 'close to stall speed'

(Newser) - Alan Greenspan warned yesterday that sluggish economic growth is increasing the risk of recession. "It's too soon to say, but the odds are clearly rising," the former Fed chief told NPR. The subprime crisis and its resulting credit turmoil has growth "getting close to stall speed,"...

Nov. Retail Sales Up 1.2%; Sky May Not Be Falling

(Newser) - November’s retail sales confounded doomsayers, surging 1.2%, twice the 0.6% analysts predicted, Bloomberg reports. Many had worried that consumer spending would take a hit as gas rose and housing fell, but now it looks like job and income growth could cushion the fall. “The numbers should...

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