Drivers were told that the price at the pump would steadily keep dropping throughout late summer and fall. Then, suddenly, the much-welcomed decline in prices stopped. What happened?
How Medical Debt Sickens Your Credit Score
More Americans are struggling to pay their medical bills, a hardship that could have a detrimental effect on their credit scores. According to the 2010 Commonwealth Fund Biennial Health Insurance Survey, a sobering 29 percent — …
What Italy tells us about Europe’s debt crisis
So we all know Italy is a mess. Its government debt to GDP ratio of 127% in 2010 is the third worst in the OECD (after Japan and Greece). Economic growth is practically nonexistent, with growth surpassing 2% only once since 2001. So is it any surprise that Italy has been tarred as one of the PIIGS and fallen into a debt …
Large and In Charge: Mega-Caps Draw Wall Street’s Attention
Wall Street analysts: think "big" in small market.
Why A New Leader Won’t Save S&P
It’s tempting to read the resignation of Deven Sharma, who stepped down as president of S&P Monday night, as an admission that the rating agency goofed in downgrading the United States’ sovereign rating from AAA to AA+, even as Fitch and Moody’s maintained America’s top grade. Warren Buffett said the U.S. should be rated “quadruple A.” …
50 Percent Interest and Jail Time For Credit Card Debt?
Despite the gains we’ve have made chipping away at our collective debt, many Americans still struggle to balance the weight of their credit card debt every month. People carrying a lot of debt have little opportunity to transfer …
Did You Snag a $100 HP TouchPad? Triple Your Money Now on eBay
Here’s one undeniable reason why buying an HP TouchPad tablet at the firesale price of $99.99 was a good move: Mere hours after the tablets were available for $100, they’ve been selling for nearly $300 on eBay.
$16.4 Million Ferrari Sets New Record For Most Expensive Car
California auctioneer Goodings & Co., sold a 1957 Ferrari Testa Rossa for $16.4 million on Saturday, the highest price ever paid for a car at auction. The previous record was $12 million, also for a 1957 Ferrari Testa Rossa.
Dognapping! The Economy Is to Blame for a Rise in Dog Kidnapping
Pets and the economy have a curious relationship. Overall spending in the pet industry has risen steadily over the past few years, even as the economy has struggled. But spending on pets isn’t entirely recession-proof, as …
Use Targeted Saving to Achieve Your Goals
Most people work toward several financial goals at once but keep their money clumped together in a single savings account. With this setup, it’s easy to forget how much you’ve saved for each goal — and to borrow money from one …
The only way to fix the euro zone is…
Late the other night, I was talking about the debt problems in the euro zone with my wife, who is also a journalist. “How can Europe solve the crisis anyway?” she asked me. Leaving aside for a moment how pathetic it is that we still discuss such issues in our evenings at home, it got me musing about what really needs to get done to …
Could Your Credit Card Information be Hacked?
If you think the British tabloid phone-hacking scandal has nothing to do with your personal financial information, think again. A consumer advocate savvy in high-tech financial security discovered that similar tricks used by hackers to break into people’s voicemail accounts could also be exploited to gain access to confidential credit …