Washington’s debt deal raised hope that the U.S. economic recovery might not be so doomed after all. But the threat of a looming debt downgrade remains, which could still increase borrowing rates and put a damper on U.S. growth, if it causes investors to ditch U.S. Treasuries in search of safer havens. And yet, the prospect of a weaker …
Markets cheered the last-minute arrival of a debt deal in Washington. But beneath those relieving headlines was some much grimmer news: manufacturing around the world, the lifeblood of the global economy, is in the dumps.
In July, factories in Asia and Europe grew at the weakest rate since mid-2009, according to business surveys of …
The bad news just keeps coming.
The U.S. economy grew even less than expected in the second quarter, at a rate of 1.3%, down from what many economists predicted would be 1.8% or higher. The reasons for the continued lackluster performance haven’t changed. Consumers, squeezed by higher gas and other prices, are buying less of …
As the debt ceiling debate marches on, politicians are under more and more heat from bond investors and rating agencies to reach a deal that would avoid both a crippling default and a credit downgrade. The legal debt limit driving the deal has forced a conversation Washington has long managed to avoid, which, all in all, seems like a …
The biggest fear in Washington right now is that a standoff over the debt ceiling might lead to a swift U.S. default. But a growing chorus of economists and investors say they’re less worried about what happens on August 2 than what comes after. After all, politicians are bound to reach a compromise on the debt ceiling at some point, …
The drawn-out debt ceiling debacle has Washington politicians all in a tizzy. But financial markets — the looming force behind the Treasury’s August 2 deadline for Congress to strike a deal on raising the debt limit — still haven’t been shaken. Many worry the failure to strike a deal by the deadline would cause investors to sell off …
There’s been a lot of talk about what the latest eurozone deal on Greece means for Europe. But Americans may also be wondering what it means to them.
The New York Times flicked at this today. U.S. money market funds are the real sore spot for Americans when it comes to the eurozone crisis. They hold billions in European banks’ debt, …
Families have to balance budgets, so shouldn’t governments have to do the same? Not according to Rana Foroohar’s column in the latest issue of TIME. There’s a folksy appeal to the idea of a balanced budget amendment being pushed by Congressional Republicans. Since individual households aren’t supposed to spend more than what they make, …
American air travelers have reason to celebrate. American Airlines is trading in its fleet of outdated gas-guzzlers for a brand new crop of planes. It’s a welcome development, since the country’s third largest airline is notorious for carting customers around in some of the industry’s shabbiest and noisiest planes. It’s also good news …
Thursday marks the one-year anniversary of the Dodd-Frank financial overhaul. The new law, which came on the heels of financial catastrophe, was supposed to usher in sweeping change by tightening the reins on the unwieldy financial industry. Now is a good time to ask: Is the financial system any safer?
Not likely. And here are a few …
Here we go again. Another show about conspicuous consumption for the debt-riddled masses.
If you love the cardboard mansions of “MTV Cribs” or the botox-heavy cat fights of Bravo’s “Real Housewives” shows, chances are you’ll love this: “Wall $treet Wives,” a reality show about the fabulous lives of the women behind the men of Wall …
It’s hard to tell where the financial fallout of Rupert Murdoch’s media woes could end. The phone-hacking scandal over British tabloid News of the World last week caused a whopping 15% drop in the company’s stock price. Now the FBI has jumped into the fray by opening its own probe into whether News Corp employees hacked into the …
