US economy

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Lew: US Will Hit Debt Ceiling in October

Warns Congress it must act 'as soon as possible' to raise limit

(Newser) - Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew has given Congress until mid-October to raise the debt ceiling. That's when he predicts the Treasury will run out of "extraordinary measures" to avoid going over the $16.7 trillion borrowing limit. In a letter to lawmakers today, Lew urged them to act "...

Economist Presents Scary US Debt Number: $70T

James Hamilton: That's the 2012 total of off-balance-sheet federal liabilities

(Newser) - If you're worried about our country's fiscal health, you may want to stop reading. A UC San Diego economics professor sees a problem area we're overlooking: "the growth of federal liabilities that are not included in the officially reported numbers." James Hamilton did the math,...

Unemployment Falls to 7.4%, a 4-Year Low

...but dig deeper and jobs report starts to look pretty bad

(Newser) - Unemployment fell to a 4.5-year low of 7.4% in July, after employers added 162,000 jobs, the Labor Department announced today. But don't celebrate. That 162,000 figure was the lowest since March, and significantly less than analysts were expecting—those surveyed by Bloomberg expected to see...

GDP Rises 1.7%; Why That&#39;s Horrible
 GDP Rises 1.7%; 
 Why That's Horrible 
OPINION
Jul 31, 2013 11:15 AM CDT

GDP Rises 1.7%; Why That's Horrible

Neil Irwin thinks we need to do better in this economy

(Newser) - The US economy grew 1.7% last quarter, the Commerce Department announced today , which is a lot better than the 1% analysts expected. "It is what markets and the journalists who write about them like to call a 'huge beat,'" writes Neil Irwin at the Washington ...

Obama's Plan: Drag Your Attention Back to Economy

He'll give new series of speeches starting tomorrow

(Newser) - Natural disasters, political scandals, and stories ranging from the Middle East to Trayvon Martin have diverted the national conversation away from the economy, and President Obama is launching an effort to bring it back. The administration is planning a new batch of speeches—up to six, with the first one...

More Good News for Housing Market

New home sales at fastest pace in 5 years

(Newser) - Sales of new American homes rose in May to the fastest pace in five years, a solid gain that added to signs of a steadily improving housing market. The Commerce Department says sales rose 2.1% last month compared with April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 476,000,...

Unemployment Ticks Up to 7.6%

175K jobs were added in May

(Newser) - The unemployment rate ticked up a notch in May: It had been expected to remain at 7.5% , but instead went up to 7.6%, the Wall Street Journal reports. But, the AP notes, that's because more people are looking for work, which is a good thing. And while...

Great Lakes' Plan: Water- Based 'Blue Economy'

New businesses to include resorts, labs, manufacturing

(Newser) - Cities surrounding the Great Lakes have had it tough since their manufacturing industries dwindled—but now, they're hoping for a comeback based on an enormous resource: the Lakes themselves. "We all recognize that water has become more and more of a precious commodity," says Milwaukee mayor Tom...

Unemployment Hits 4-Year Low: 7.5%

As 165K jobs are added in April

(Newser) - Today's jobs report beat expectations: The unemployment rate fell to 7.5%, a four-year low, in April, and 165,000 jobs were created. Economists had expected 148,000 new jobs and an unemployment rate holding steady at 7.6%, the Wall Street Journal reports. More good news from the...

Student Debtors Steering Clear of Auto, Home Loans

New Federal Reserve Bank of New York study shows declining borrowing rates

(Newser) - The well-documented and much-fretted over explosion in student loan debt could be doing serious damage to the housing market and auto industries, as graduates strive to avoid going deeper into debt, according to an analysis posted on the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's blog . For the first time...

Just 88K Jobs Added in March
 Just 88K Jobs Added in March 
Apr 5, 2013 7:50 AM CDT

Just 88K Jobs Added in March

Unemployment falls to 7.6%, but even that's not good news

(Newser) - Unemployment fell to 7.6% in March, but just 88,000 jobs were added—which the Wall Street Journal calls a "very bad number." Economists weren't expecting much from today's jobs report—according to NPR , they were forecasting "slow and steady" growth—but they had...

Jan. Home Prices See Biggest Jump Since 2006

Case-Shiller index points to 8.1% growth year-over-year

(Newser) - Home prices jumped 8.1% this January compared to a year before, according to the 20-city Case-Shiller index. That beats economists' expectations of a 7.9% increase and marks the biggest year-over-year jump since the summer of 2006, the Wall Street Journal reports. In other words, it's "the...

Unemployment Drops to 7.7%
 Unemployment Drops to 7.7% 
Mar 8, 2013 7:49 AM CST

Unemployment Drops to 7.7%

236K jobs were added in February, many more than expected

(Newser) - The February jobs report is out, and it's way better than economists expected: The unemployment rate dropped to 7.7% from January's 7.9% ; economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires had expected it to drop to 7.8%. That's the lowest rate since December 2008. And the...

For First Time in 4 Years, Americans Borrowing More

Household debts up 0.3%, perhaps showing economy rebounding

(Newser) - American household debt rose in the fourth quarter of 2012, the first rise since 2008 when the recession was in full force, reports the Wall Street Journal . Debts rose 0.3% to $11.34 trillion, including $553 billion in new mortgages, the single biggest source of consumer debt. "There...

Disease You&#39;ve Never Heard Of Is Draining Economy
Disease You've Likely Never Heard of Costs US Millions
in case you missed it
Feb 16, 2013 1:00 PM CST

Disease You've Likely Never Heard of Costs US Millions

Little-known Chagas disease sucks $900M a year

(Newser) - A little-known parasitic disease from Latin America costs the US economy $900 million a year, the New York Times reports, even though you've probably never heard of Chagas disease . To put the figure in perspective, the much more publicized Lyme disease costs the US about $2.5 billion, a...

China Tops US in Global Trade

Chinese end America's post-war trading dominance

(Newser) - Hello, empire? China announced that it has surpassed the US in at least one economic category, becoming the world's top trading nation in goods. China says that last year its combined imports and exports barely edged out America's, $3.87 trillion to $3.82 trillion, the Guardian reports....

Unemployment Inches Up to 7.9%

157K jobs added

(Newser) - The unemployment rate ticked up from 7.8% to 7.9% in January, according to a jobs report the Wall Street Journal calls "disappointing." The economy added 157,000 jobs, slightly below expectations of 166,000. But here's some news that got a "Whoa, mama!"...

Economy Shrinks for 1st Time Since 2009

Unexpected GDP drop comes as defense spending slumps

(Newser) - As "firsts" go, this is an unfortunate one: The US economy contracted in Q4, marking the first time it has done so since the recession ended. The AP reports that the biggest cut in defense spending in four decades, reduced exports, and sluggish growth in company stockpiles contributed to...

Why You Should Care About the Decline of Labor Unions

Unions help the economy as a whole: Eric Liu

(Newser) - Union membership is at a 97-year low in America, with just 11.3% of workers belonging to one. Because you're probably not one of them, you probably don't care about this low point—but you should, writes Eric Liu in Time . Not only do unions lift wages for...

48% Chance You&#39;re Overqualified for Your Job
48% Chance You're
Overqualified for Your Job
study says
Jan 28, 2013 8:31 AM CST

48% Chance You're Overqualified for Your Job

Assuming you have your bachelor's degree, says new study

(Newser) - Next month's college loan payment might be even more of a bitter pill to swallow: A new study out today finds that almost half of all working Americans with college degrees are overqualified for their jobs. In 2010, 5% of all janitors, 15% of cab drivers, and 25% of...

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