US Economy
US state, city budget crises deepen
Rhode Island to shut down for 12 days
By Tom Eley, August 27, 2009
Rhode Island will shut down for 12 days this year, joining a growing number of states and cities that are suspending services and furloughing workers to lessen budget deficits.
Nearly one year since the crash of 2008
Bernanke's apologia for the Fed
By Patrick Martin, August 25, 2009
Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke delivered a speech to the annual summer symposium of the world’s central bankers, held in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, which combined a review of the past year ...
Initial jobless claims rise unexpectedly
2008 US Census shows sharp increase in poverty
By Tom Eley, August 21, 2009
The US census for 2008, to be released in September, will show a sharp increase in poverty. Meanwhile, this week saw unexpectedly high weekly jobless claims, a rash of mass layoffs, and a record-high ...
New AIG head to get at least $7 million annually
By Jerry White, August 20, 2009
In a regulatory filing Monday, American International Group (AIG) disclosed that its new CEO, Robert H. Benmosche, will be paid at least $7 million a year.
One in nine Americans uses food stamps
By Tom Eley, August 20, 2009
May 2009 set the sixth consecutive monthly record in food stamp use in the US, with 34.4 million Americans relying on federal assistance to feed themselves.
Stock market gyrations reflect fears of protracted global slump
By Patrick O’Connor, August 19, 2009
Stock markets in the US and internationally declined sharply Monday before recouping some of their losses on Tuesday. The volatility reflects concerns that despite recent GDP growth reported for sever...
Federal regulators covered up Ponzi scheme at Stanford bank
By Jerry White, August 19, 2009
The US Securities and Exchange Commission ignored warnings from a former employee of Stanford Group six years before the federal regulatory agency seized the offshore investment firm and charged Texas...
Another major US bank collapses
By Patrick O'Connor, August 17, 2009
Alabama-based Colonial Bank collapsed Friday, bringing the total number of US bank failures so far this year to 77.
NAFTA summit papers over divisions between US, Mexico and Canada
By Rafael Azul, August 14, 2009
This week’s NAFTA summit in Guadalajara ended without any agreement on confronting the deep economic crisis that has swept the North American continent.
As layoffs, foreclosures mount
US Federal Reserve hails prospects for a business recovery
By Barry Grey, August 14, 2009
The Federal Reserve Board said Wednesday that the US economy was “leveling out,” even as new data on unemployment, home foreclosures, home prices and retail sales painted a picture of growing econ...
US corporations squeezing more output from workers and paying lower wages
By Patrick O’Connor, August 12, 2009
US Labor Department data released yesterday showed labor productivity up 6.4 percent in the second quarter, the largest gain since 2003. Over the same period, workers’ compensation fell at an annual...
Paulson and Goldman Sachs: A dirty secret of the Wall Street bailout
By Barry Grey, August 11, 2009
An article in Sunday’s New York Times sheds a measure of light on the corrupt relationship between government officials and the banks which underlies the multi-trillion-dollar bailout of Wall Street...
