If you get a pay envelope, Uncle Sam's about to put a little something extra in it. Then he wants you to go out and spend, spend, spend. ...more

January 25, 2008

A growing conviction that the United States is headed toward recession sent Wall Street plunging Tuesday, with weak retail sales figures and disappointing results from Citigroup exacerbating investors' pessimistic mood. The Dow Jones industrials tumbled nearly 280 points. ...more

January 16, 2008

The nation's major retailers are slated to report tepid sales gains for December today, likely making the holiday shopping season the weakest since 2002. ...more

January 10, 2008

Early holiday sales reports are weak, with Target Corp., the nation's No. 2 retailer, warning that its sales may have fallen in December. ...more

December 26, 2007

With Christmas approaching fast, the next couple of weeks will bring the seasonal decorations and sights that shine every year. Among the green and red lights, the eggnog and the menorah, another seasonal spectacle will emerge. ...more

December 22, 2007

U.S. economic growth will slow to 1 percent in the fourth quarter as consumer spending cools and the housing slump enters its third year, a survey showed. ...more

December 12, 2007

Consumers battered by a slumping housing market and a credit crunch slowed the growth in spending to the smallest amount in four months. In another sign of weakness, construction activity fell by a larger-than-expected amount. ...more

December 1, 2007

Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke on Thursday hinted that another interest rate cut may be needed to bolster the economy. The worsening credit crunch, a deepening housing slump and rising energy prices probably will create some "headwinds for the consumer in the months ahead," he said. ...more

November 30, 2007

Rising foreclosures will lead to billions of dollars in lost economic activity next year in the nation's major metropolitan areas, but homeowners and financial institutions have the ability to work together to contain the effects, according to a report compiled for the U.S. Conference of Mayors. ...more

November 28, 2007

With Christmas only about eight weeks away, shoppers are feeling more forlorn about the economy than they have since hurricanes Katrina and Rita battered the Gulf Coast two years ago. ...more

October 31, 2007