economy

Food Stamps Fast Becoming Norm for Struggling Families

Cheryl Phillips — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 10:14:21 -0600

Food stamps are no longer carrying the stigma that they did years ago. Now re-named the "SNAP" program (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), more than 36 million people in the United States use a monthly food benefit to help feed their families in these unstable economic times. Once viewed as a program that fed people who didn't want to work, it now helps feed one in eight Americans and one in four children.

New Unemployment Claims Lowest In A Year

Michael Santo — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:05:57 -0600

New unemployment numbers issued by the Federal government on Wednesday show a slowing in new jobless claim applications. Initial claims for the week ending Nov. 21st were a seasonally adjusted 466,000, down from a revised 501,000 in the prior week. This is the lowest level in more than a year.

Art market rebounding, but still tough

Seamus Esparza — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 02:04:42 -0600

Fast sales and decent prices at London and Paris' contemporary art fairs show the market for the visual arts is recovering but the demand is still slow. The fairs held consecutively over four days at Europe's top art capitals show that the market is still alive.

Professor Says Worst In Jobs Yet To Come

Michael Santo — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:52:45 -0600

Grow old with me, the best is yet to be; that's a famous quote from Robert Browning. Nouriel Roubini is professor of Economics at the Stern School of Business at New York University and Chairman of Roubini Global Economics would say to job seekers, "the worse it yet to come."

EU Announces Exit From Recession

Michael Santo — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 10:38:53 -0600

Although statistically, at least for one quarter, the United States is officially out of recession, there are some who doubt it. Thus, the wait is on to see feedback on this news: the European Union says it is now out of recession as well.

Federal Reserve Leaves Fed Funds Rate Unchanged

Michael Santo — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:06:24 -0600

As expected, the Federal Reserve kept its benchmark federal funds rate unchanged. While it said the economy had "continued to pick up" since its last policy-setting meeting in September, the Fed maintained the rate in a range of zero to 0.25 percent.

Halloween Candy Sales Were Sweet

Jesse Slome — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:24:29 -0600

Halloween candy sales were expected to reach $5 billion, an increase in spite of the sour economy. The holiday is the number one holiday for candy sales.

Commercial Lender CIT Group Files Ch. 11 Bankruptcy

Michael Santo — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:28:57 -0600

Commercial lender CIT Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in New York court on Sunday. CIT specializes in lending to small and medium-sized businesses.

Consumer Spending Plummets in September

Michael Santo — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 08:39:26 -0500

The Commerce Department said Friday that consumer spending in September dropped precipitously. Although statistics seem to indicate the recession is over, the American public, it seems, is not convinced.

Recession Over According to Statistics

Cheryl Phillips — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:32:25 -0500

The Commerce Department says the GDP grew at an annual rate of 3.5 percent last quarter, the first positive quarterly growth in a year, and the largest quarterly advance since the third quarter of 2007. This unofficially marks the end of the worst recession in 70 years.

Toys R Us to Offer a Layaway Program

Michael Santo — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 10:03:38 -0500

Someone watching old shows from the 1950's might recall the term "layaway," but it's not a term that's been used much lately. Popular during the Great Depression, Toys R Us announced on Monday they would begin offering the same type of layaway program, for big-ticket items, in time for the holidays.

Jobless Claims Drop Unexpectedly

Michael Santo — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 11:32:29 -0500

The number of newly laid-off workers filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits fell by an unexpectedly large amount, in weekly numbers released by the Labor Department on Thursday. With that, the numbers fell to the lowest level since early January.