recession

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Recession Pushes African Immigrants to Head Home

Many opt for slower, cheaper lifestyle

(Newser) - The US recession is driving many middle-class African immigrants home, where life is slower and growth has lately pointed to a bright economic future, the Washington Post reports. Diaspora societies of immigrants say many members are planning to return to Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana.“The people I know here...

Scammers Target Panicky Job Hunters
Scammers Target
Panicky Job Hunters
May 26, 2009 2:10 AM CDT

Scammers Target Panicky Job Hunters

Experts warn work-from-home frauds are mushrooming as unemployment rises

(Newser) - Scammers are taking advantage of the recession to con people desperately seeking work out of what little cash they have left, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Watchdog groups warn that phony work-from-home offers promising quick cash in return for an initial outlay of money are proliferating, and that some fraudsters are...

Fugitive Execs: Good at Scams, Bad at Being on Lam

(Newser) - In the midst of a recession, so-called “executive fugitives” are driven to increasingly desperate efforts to flee as schemes implode and they face ruin—or prison time. NPR examines the tactics of these con artists—and how more often than not, say the law-enforcement authorities who chase them, their...

Early Retirees Face Shaky Financial Future

Bucking poll, older workers ditch work in tough economy

(Newser) - A growing number of older US  workers are bucking expectations and retiring early, risking financial hardship in their senior years, the Los Angeles Times reports. Instead of staving off retirement to rebuild diminished nest eggs, many older Americans, frustrated by the job market, are simply calling it quits. Add aging...

Recession Whacks Tinseltown Agents

(Newser) - Hollywood's toughest power brokers—the big shot "10 percenters" of the top talent agencies—are no longer immune to the recession, reports the Independent. With the merger between former rival agencies William Morris and Endeavor officially approved, 100 top agents got the ax. Officials of the new entity hope...

Recession, Competition Imperil Malls

100 shopping centers could be 'dead' by year's end

(Newser) - A half-century-old American standby is ailing as shopping malls around the country struggle to stay afloat, the Wall Street Journal reports. Same-store sales in shopping centers fell 6.5% in the year ending March 31, and the biggest mall operator has seen sales drop 7.3%. Some 100 malls could...

Designer Jeans Thrive in Tight Times

Pants provide 'affordable luxury'

(Newser) - The economy may be tight, but consumers aren’t cutting their pricey denim loose, the Los Angeles Times reports. Sales of premium brand jeans climbed 17% in 2008 and continued a smaller increase into this year—one of the few bits of good news for retailers. A new “focus...

Cash-Strapped Country Clubs Welcome the Public

Upper crust forced to adjust as struggling clubs aim for the common touch

(Newser) - Struggling country clubs have decided to ditch their exclusiveness to stave off extinction, the Washington Post reports, slashing fees and opening facilities to the public. Long-standing members often sniff as dress codes vanish, nachos replace filet mignon on menus, pickup trucks appear in parking spots, and the public floods in—...

Uncertainty, Not Poverty, Behind Recession Blues

It's not the lack of funds, it's the lack of knowing that brings us down

(Newser) - Americans are worrying more than they were last year, and happiness is down while sadness is up, writes Daniel Gilbert in the New York Times. But it’s not the lightness of our pocketbooks that’s weighing on us; it’s the uncertainty of the times. While most of us...

In Recession, Sales of Sex Toys Boom

People have 'more time on their hands'

(Newser) - The recession is good news for at least one retail segment: Sales of so-called sexual enhancement devices are through the roof, Advertising Age reports. Lubricant sales jumped 32% in the first quarter, and sales of “marital aids” sold in food, drug, and mass-market stores have soared 74%. “When...

US Trading Partners See Huge GDP Falls

Mexico contracts 21.5% as American demand dries up

(Newser) - Yesterday Mexico became the latest country to disclose a sharp economic contraction as a result of the slowdown in US consumption of imported goods. Mexican GDP fell at an annualized rate of 21.5% in the first quarter, following Germany, down 14.4%, and Japan, 15.2%—its worst performance...

Cramer Ain't That Bad a Stock Picker, Actually

(Newser) - Jon Stewart, take note: Jim Cramer is not that bad at picking stocks, the New York Times reports. A study of Cramer’s televised market advice shows that the former hedge fund manager beat the market in 2005-07. The raw numbers from the fictional “Cramer portfolio” outperformed the S&...

Fed's Fears Push Dow Off 53
 Fed's Fears Push Dow Off 53 
MARKETS
May 20, 2009 3:11 PM CDT

Fed's Fears Push Dow Off 53

(Newser) - Markets fell today after the Federal Reserve warned of a more prolonged recession than it previously expected, the Wall Street Journal reports. Financials and tech contributed to the plunge, which even a 6-month high in oil prices could not stop. “We’re just dealing with a stock market that...

Ahead, the Summer of the Furlough

(Newser) - Already-downsized companies seeking to cut costs further will likely increase temporary layoffs this summer, hoping the season will ease the pain of a missed paycheck, Fortune reports. A recent poll found that 44% of US companies are considering or have already implemented furloughs. But some institutions and employees are getting...

AmEx to Ax 4K Jobs in $800M Chop
AmEx to Ax 4K Jobs in $800M Chop 
May 18, 2009 5:48 PM CDT

AmEx to Ax 4K Jobs in $800M Chop

Cuts are in addition to 7K workers laid off last fall

(Newser) - American Express said today it plans to slash 4,000 jobs as part of an $800 million cost-cutting plan, CNNMoney reports. The cuts are in addition to 7,000 workers slated last fall to be laid off. Amex also plans to reduce operating costs and investment spending. The company "...

Dow Up 235 on Housing Hopes
 Dow Up 235 on Housing Hopes 
MARKETS
May 18, 2009 3:11 PM CDT

Dow Up 235 on Housing Hopes

(Newser) - Markets rose significantly today on indications of a turnaround in the housing sector, the Wall Street Journal reports, with an industry confidence metric at its highest since September 2008. Financials—Bank of America was up 9.8%—led the S&P to a symbolic close above 900. The Dow was...

From Ashes of Recession, a Reshaped Fed Will Rise

The Fed stands to gain some powers and lose others

(Newser) - Among the myriad things that will be reshaped by the current economic crisis is the Federal Reserve, the Wall Street Journal reports. The steps the Fed has taken to stave off further economic turmoil have made it more vulnerable than it has been in years: If a lasting recovery takes...

Maestro Wages May Sink US Orchestras
 Maestro Wages 
 May Sink US 
 Orchestras 
analysis
May 16, 2009 7:54 PM CDT

Maestro Wages May Sink US Orchestras

(Newser) - Overpaid maestros had better accept slimmer paychecks before America's great orchestras sink into silence, John von Rhein writes in the Chicago Tribune. With the Great Recession raging and musicians accepting pay cuts, big-name conductors like Lorin Maazel and James Levine still rake in millions. Welcome to "the dirty little...

Thrift Is Expensive in the Hamptons

Wave goodbye to conspicuous consumption in the playground of decadence

(Newser) - Keeping up with the Joneses means downplaying wealth in the Hamptons this summer, Allen Salkin writes in the New York Times. Conspicuous consumption is out, conspicuous thrift is in as Hamptonites try very hard to match the economic malaise in the rest of the country. “Low-key” and “beachy”...

Mexican Migration Plummets
 Mexican Migration Plummets 
May 15, 2009 1:44 AM CDT

Mexican Migration Plummets

Would-be migrants wary of paying smugglers' fees as jobs dry up

(Newser) - The number of Mexicans heading to the US has plunged as the American job market continues to tank, the New York Times reports. Census data from the Mexican government shows that emigration—with the vast majority to America—was down 25% in the year ending August 2008, and there has...

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