recession

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Firms Cut Pay Instead of Jobs
 Firms Cut Pay Instead of Jobs 
Feb 17, 2009 2:24 PM CST

Firms Cut Pay Instead of Jobs

(Newser) - Companies looking to cut labor costs are increasingly turning to salary reductions rather than further layoffs in an attempt to save employee morale, the Chicago Tribune reports. One extreme case is Acco Brands in Illinois, which imposed a six-week, 47% reduction for all workers instead of downsizing. "It's an...

Obama Signs $787B Stimulus
 Obama Signs $787B Stimulus 
Feb 17, 2009 1:54 PM CST

Obama Signs $787B Stimulus

Liberals grumble over President's compromises

(Newser) - President Obama signed the economic stimulus bill into law today, the AP reports. In a Denver science museum chosen to underscore the bill’s investments in green technology and science education, Obama said he hoped the bill "will ignite our imagination once more, spurring new discoveries and breakthroughs that...

Japan Economy Shrinks by Most in 35 Years

4th-quarter contraction of 3.3% was 3 times worse than US

(Newser) - Japan's economy contracted by a shocking 3.3% in the fourth quarter of 2008, three times worse than the US and the worst performance in 35 years. The Financial Times reports that a sharp drop in exports contributed to the slump—the third straight quarter of negative growth. The figures...

Oil Prices Plunge, Gas Not So Much

Refineries slashed production after demand for gas dipped

(Newser) - Gas is pumping toward $2 per gallon—a 22% increase since Dec. 30—even though oil prices have dipped 16% over the same period. What gives? When penny-pinched Americans cut back on fuel last fall, oil refineries were slow to ease production. Now they're overcompensating with production cuts to recover...

NASCAR Needs to Rev Up
 NASCAR Needs to Rev Up 
ANALYSIS
Feb 13, 2009 4:18 PM CST

NASCAR Needs to Rev Up

Sport cuts costs to keep fans at the races

(Newser) - The US auto industry is teetering on the brink of destruction—and NASCAR isn't too far behind it. The Daytona 500, NASCAR’s Super Bowl, takes place Sunday, but business is stalling, leaving the costly sport looking for a lift, Sean Gregory and Steve Goldberg write in Time. “We...

Strapped Networks Air Ads for Booze, Sex in Prime Time

(Newser) - The airwaves are getting a lot more mature. On Sunday, 15 cities saw an Absolut Vodka ad during the Grammy Awards, the first time in years that a liquor commercial has run in prime time on a network-owned station. Other ads not suitable for innocent ears (K-Y Jelly, anyone?) are...

In Sticky Situations, Recession's an Easy Out

If you don't want to say the real reason, invoke the economy!

(Newser) - Think of all the commitments you would love to back out of. Chances are, you can use the economy as an excuse to set you free, reports the New York Times. Reaping the social benefits of recession is big with everyone from the mom who didn't want to confront her...

GDP Nosedives Across Atlantic
 GDP Nosedives Across Atlantic 
Feb 13, 2009 6:20 AM CST

GDP Nosedives Across Atlantic

4th-quarter GDP drop signals worsening recession

(Newser) - We're not alone: The euro zone’s recession worsened in the fourth quarter of last year as its GDP saw its biggest decline since records began in 1995, the Wall Street Journal reports. The GDP contracted 1.5% quarter-to-quarter and 1.2% since the year before, EU figures showed. Germany,...

Second-Half Rebound? Don't Bank On It

(Newser) - Economists say the prospects of a recovery in the second half of the year are looking less and less likely, the Wall Street Journal reports. Most economists surveyed predict the nation's GDP will grow in the third quarter by a measly 0.7%, less than half the rate predicted 6...

China Loses Taste for Fast Food
 China Loses Taste for Fast Food 
Feb 12, 2009 4:25 PM CST

China Loses Taste for Fast Food

Chinese revert to cheaper, healthier options amid recession

(Newser) - The dollar menu thrives when times are tough in the US, but in China—where Western fast food is no bargain—the American chains are facing tough competition. Price is the main sticking point, but not the only one. "It's fast food," one diner in Shanghai told...

Celeb Books Only Safe Bet These Days
Celeb Books Only Safe Bet These Days
ANALYSIS
Feb 12, 2009 4:08 PM CST

Celeb Books Only Safe Bet These Days

(Newser) - Britney Spears is shopping a book to top publishers, and editors are lining up to meet her—a further sign of the strapped book industry's new mantra: "Only the sure-fire, big ticket, lowest-common-denominator bestsellers will survive," writes Sara Nelson in the Wrap. Spears’ book, no doubt with a...

Farmers Plucked by Chicken Slump

Foreclosures loom as chicken company cuts contracts

(Newser) - Hundreds of poultry farmers face foreclosures on their pricey chicken houses after poultry giant Pilgrim's Pride dropped their contracts. Some are suing in return, claiming the company encouraged them to take on hefty mortgages and vowed to keep their grandkids in business, the Wall Street Journal reports. Most farmers own...

Homeless Woman's Plea Brings Offers of Help

Homeless woman helped after asking Obama at rally

(Newser) - A homeless woman who raised her hand during President Obama’s visit to Fort Myers did so because she needed help. But Henrietta Hughes probably didn’t expect to become the “face of the economic crisis,” as one brand-new website dedicated to the 61-year-old’s plight declared, CNN ...

Governors Back House on Stimulus
Governors
Back House
on Stimulus
Feb 11, 2009 8:02 AM CST

Governors Back House on Stimulus

Senate version provides for half as much direct state aid

(Newser) - With the House and Senate reconciling their competing stimulus bills, governors are pushing for the House version to prevail, the Washington Post reports. States would receive billions in aid if that version goes through—or next to nothing if the Senate's legislation passes. "If the Senate version holds, there...

New Economic Saviors: Marc Cuban and You

(Newser) - Marc Cuban has some ideas about how to get the nation out of this financial mess, and they have a lot to do with—no surprise—Marc Cuban. The billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks says entrepreneurs can lead the way, so he's soliciting business plans at his blog, the...

Don't Expect Diamonds on V-Day

Americans to spend 15% less this year on holiday

(Newser) - This may not be the year you get that Tiffany necklace: Americans plan to cut back on lavish displays of love this Valentine's Day, MSBNC reports. One survey predicts that holiday spending will drop 15%, from, says another survey, about $123 to $103 per person. The plunge comes after nearly...

Downturn 'Worst for 100 Years': UK Minister

Brown ally says current crisis surpasses Great Depression

(Newser) - The current economic crisis will be the worst in a century, surpassing even the Great Depression, according to Gordon Brown's closest political ally. Ed Balls, a minister sometimes tipped as a future British leader, said that the downturn would be "more extreme and more serious than that of the...

Economy Takes Chomp Out of America's Top Dog Show

Westminster Kennel Club show empties out as economy goes to the dogs

(Newser) - America's top dog will be crowned at the 133rd Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in Manhattan tonight but the rough economy has thinned out the pack, reports AP. At $75 per entry, the event fell 14 pooches short of its usual 2,500 competitors. Human onlookers were also fewer than...

Will the Recession Drive Up Suicides?

We're better prepared now, but rates are still tied to cultural trends

(Newser) - America is reeling from the financial crisis, and the psychological strain has analysts carefully watching national suicide rates, Time reports. Though three high-profile European businessmen took their own lives recently, suicide rates have held steady at 11 per 100,000 people; during the Great Depression, they spiked at 17 per...

Saks' Deep Price Cuts Changed All the Rules

Even high-end shoppers have gotten a taste for bargains

(Newser) - When Saks Fifth Avenue slashed prices 70% in November to kickstart a stalled holiday shopping season, it changed the rules for the entire luxe market, reports the Wall Street Journal. Retailers like Neiman Marcus and Barney's followed suit, putting an end to the unwritten deal the stores had with designers:...

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