recession

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Bartering Turns Into $10B Recession-Buster

More businesses signing on to trend of exchanging services

(Newser) - The global recession has made bartering hot, but don’t go thinking it’s all a backrub for a plumbing fix. Big money—though no cash—is changing hands through the world’s largest barter service, Bartercard. The worldwide service’s transactions are valued at $2 billion this year, up...

Recession Leads to Uptick in Teen Runaways

Increase in fleeing juveniles strains social services

(Newser) - More and more young Americans, including many under 13, have left home or been kicked out as foreclosures, unemployment, and the rising cost of living make conditions in lower-income homes even tougher than usual. Experts and government studies estimate that 1.6 million juveniles leave home each year, though there...

Gator Biz Caught in Jaws of Recession

Egg collection shrinks

(Newser) - No industry is safe from the recession, no matter how many teeth it has. The demand for alligator-skin accessories like handbags, watches, and belts has plummeted this year, leaving even top US gator farmers in danger of going out of business, USA Today reports. “This is, by far, the...

Bailout Is Bad News for Savers
Bailout
Is Bad News
for Savers
OPINION
Oct 20, 2009 12:17 PM CDT

Bailout Is Bad News for Savers

Banks get trillions, fixed-income investors get screwed: Sloan

(Newser) - Not fed up enough with just putting your taxpayer dollars directly on the line to bail out the nation’s banks? Allan Sloan has latched on to some insidious “collateral damage” from the government’s rescue plan, those trillions spent “to keep interest rates down to support the...

In New York, No One Matters But Bloomberg
 In New York, No One 
 Matters But Bloomberg 
the imperial mayor
Oct 19, 2009 11:14 AM CDT

In New York, No One Matters But Bloomberg

Political foes gone, power elite diminished, moneyed mayor calls all the shots

(Newser) - Say what you will about Michael Bloomberg—the perfect mayor for New York in a financial crisis or arrogant billionaire who's pretty much bought an unprecedented third term—above all, Chris Smith writes, he is “a one-man Establishment.” A perfect storm of his personal fortune, the vagaries of...

In Switch, 'Real Economy' Hits Big Banks
 In Switch, 
 'Real Economy' 
 Hits Big Banks 
PAUL KRUGMAN
Oct 19, 2009 9:49 AM CDT

In Switch, 'Real Economy' Hits Big Banks

Slumping profits are 'payback' from Main Street whipped by bad practices

(Newser) - Those concerned about the nation’s banks should forget about the “softly, softly policy” of the Obama administration that has allowed Goldman Sachs to go back to business as usual in spectacular fashion. The real problem, Paul Krugman writes, is banks like Citi and Bank of America that are...

How Australia Dodged the Recession

How one country ducked the economic downturn

(Newser) - Australia has weathered the financial crisis better than any other developed country. Last week its central bank raised interest rates, indicating its primary concern is now inflation, not growth. What were the keys? Phil Dobbie of BNET explains:
  • Befriending China: Australia used to export much of what it made to
...

School Volunteering Stresses Parents Out

Pressure to help out a source of anxiety for moms and dads

(Newser) - With school budgets slashed because of the weak economy, parents are feeling more pressure than ever to volunteer. About 64% of parents surveyed by Harris Interactive say they believe it's more important than ever to pitch in, with 53%—far more than last year— saying they planned to do just...

Obama's Stealth Stimulus: $250 Checks to Seniors

With social security stagnant, Obama proposes payment to elderly

(Newser) - Seniors won’t be getting a boost in their Social Security benefits this January, but President Obama tried to head off that announcement yesterday by encouraging Congress to give them all a one-time $250 check. The administration sees these payments, which would cost the government about $13 billion, as another...

Dow at 10,000? 'Hold the Cheering'
Dow at 10,000?
'Hold the Cheering'
analysts' reactions
Oct 14, 2009 1:58 PM CDT

Dow at 10,000? 'Hold the Cheering'

It's decent news, but let's not get carried away

(Newser) - The Dow hit 10,000 today, but most analysts aren't exactly falling off their chairs in excitement:
  • Mark Hulbert, MarketWatch: "It would be entirely in investors' rights to feel pretty good about it. But they're not, on the whole. That's surprising, and suggests to contrarian analysts" that a "
...

Pay Cuts: America's New Norm
 Pay Cuts: America's New Norm 
Oct 14, 2009 7:49 AM CDT

Pay Cuts: America's New Norm

Nine straight months of declining pay sets new record

(Newser) - In previous recessions, layoffs were the principal way for employers to cut costs—pay cuts were seen as demoralizing and a sure-fire way to lose workers to other jobs. But now pay cuts, sometimes in the form of demotions or shortened workweeks, are more common than at any time since...

Soaring Price of Wings Begets Boneless Substitutes

Perplexed eateries switch breast strips for once-cheaper wings

(Newser) - In a sign of a poultry market apocalypse, chicken wings are now more expensive than skinless, boneless chicken breast, because chicken wings are cheaper. Wait, what? Strange but true: thanks to the recession, restaurants are ordering less chicken breast, the New York Times explains, while consumers buy more of the...

Hollywood Heads Roll as DVD Sales Plunge

New studio heads place bets on 'branded entertainment'

(Newser) - In previous downturns, the corporate owners of America's movie studios would cut Hollywood some slack. Not anymore: these days, the corporate suites of LA look like the aftermath of a slasher flick, with old hands kicked out at Disney, Universal, MGM, and Paramount. With DVD sales down 25% and...

Recession Finds Place in Rap's Latest Hits

Jay-Z, Young Jeezy, Lil Wayne among those referencing sour economy

(Newser) - The ugly economy is making more than a cameo in today’s hottest rap music, with Young Jeezy taking the cake by naming his latest album The Recession. Rap’s often been a barometer of such huge swings, Sara Libby writes, noting the impact last year of Barack Obama’s...

Put New Stimulus to Work for Unemployed

Painful 'new normal' isn't good enough

(Newser) - Economists are buzzing about a "new normal" of higher unemployment and wage stagnation post-recession, but Americans shouldn't resign themselves to a mediocre economy, writes Harold Meyerson. Downturns triggered by banking crises usually cause higher rates of unemployment for longer periods than normal downturns, but the cycle can be broken...

Recession Trims Carbon Emissions 3%

There's less industrial activity, and more countries look to alternative fuels

(Newser) - The recession will help the world achieve something this year few laws have been able to: cut the output of greenhouse gases. Emissions will be down 3% mainly due to lower industrial activity, the International Energy Agency said today, with countries also helping by switching to alternative energy sources.

Obama Mulls Tax Cuts, Spending to Goose Economy

Grim jobs outlook spurs talks on new stimulus measures

(Newser) - The Obama administration is examining new ways to boost the economy amid troubling unemployment statistics. The White House and Democratic leaders in Congress are considering strategies that include new transportation spending and an extension of tax credits for first-time homebuyers and small businesses struggling with operating losses. A proposal to...

Many Jobs Are Gone Forever
 Many Jobs Are Gone Forever 
ANALYSIS
Oct 5, 2009 2:28 PM CDT

Many Jobs Are Gone Forever

Employment picture likely to remain grim for years, and predicting winning industries is a challenge

(Newser) - The job market is likely to be grim for years to come—economists expect that even if job creation returned to the brisk pace of the ‘90s, unemployment wouldn’t return to 5% until 2017. And for many of the unemployed, the numbers belie the real problem: The positions...

Condé Nast Axing Gourmet, 3 Other Titles

Magazine publisher could lose $200 million this year, industry sources say

(Newser) - Condé Nast will shut down iconic foodie magazine Gourmet as well as newer title Cookie and Brides offshoots Modern Bride and Elegant Bride, CEO Charles Townsend announced today. Hundreds of jobs will be lost in the company’s biggest single day of closings, the New York Post reports. The publishing...

Unemployment Now Lasts Longer Than Benefits

(Newser) - A rough milestone on the jobless front: The average length of time it takes to find a job—26.2 weeks—now exceeds the standard length of unemployment benefits—26 weeks. That's first time it's happened since the Labor Department began keeping stats 60 years ago, reports Bloomberg. The bit...

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