Sales of existing homes rose 23 percent locally as bargain hunters snatched up distressed properties and continued to keep home prices lower. ...more

March 24, 2009

The banks may need a bigger bailout. The government is mulling another multibillion-dollar aid package for Bank of America Corp., raising the possibility that much more taxpayer money will be needed to keep the banking industry from edging back toward the abyss. ...more

January 16, 2009

Investors agonizing over a faltering economy sent the stock market plunging all over again Wednesday after two disheartening reports convinced Wall Street that a recession, if not already here, is inevitable. The market's despair - fed by a stream of disheartening economic data - propelled the Dow Jones industrials down 733.08 points to 8,577.91 in its second-largest point loss ever. The major indexes all lost at least 7 percent. ...more

October 16, 2008

Investors agonizing over a faltering economy sent the stock market plunging all over again today after two disheartening reports convinced Wall Street that a recession, if not already here, is inevitable. The Dow Jones industrials dropped as much as 572 points, more than half their huge 936-point advance from Monday, and all the major indexes fell at least 5 percent. ...more

October 15, 2008

Brazil's government agreed to release stunning photos of Amazon Indians firing arrows at an airplane so that the world can better understand the threats facing one of the few tribes still living in near-total isolation from civilization, officials said Friday. ...more

May 31, 2008

Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke endorsed government efforts to stimulate the economy Thursday, as congressional leaders and the Bush administration moved closer to agreement on a plan. ...more

January 18, 2008

The Chesapeake Bay's famous blue crabs - feisty crustaceans that are both a regional symbol and a multimillion-dollar catch - are hovering at historically low population levels, scientists say, as pollution, climate change and overfishing threaten the bay's ultimate survivor. ...more

November 18, 2007