Want to make your garden bloom without breaking the bank? Tess Vigeland takes us on a tour of her own garden with Amy Stewart, author of "Flower Confidential."
It's a family business that only Uncle Sam could love. Ashley Milne-Tyte takes us to Queens, New York, where three generations of tax accountants prepare for April under the same roof.
Our economics editor Chris Farrell answers your burning money questions. This week, advice on life insurance for newborns, prioritizing income when you decide to establish your own nonprofit business, and the secrets of retiring at age 51.
You know you're dying to find out. What kind of salary are your coworkers making? Tess Vigeland talks snooping strategies with Donna Rosato of Money Magazine.
It seems like you deposited that check ages ago and it still hasn't cleared. There's a reason. Tess finds out why with Jean Ann Fox of the Consumer Federation of America.
There are lots of banks who'd love the chance to sit on your cash. And that means you can find some pretty competitive rates. Lisa Napoli offers this primer on finding high-yield savings.
A federal judge says the pioneering company that connects cheap phone calls over the Internet can't sign up new customers while it appeals a ruling that it stole ideas from wireless giant Verizon.
A traditionally black college, whose endowment has been cut in half over the past decade, could be saved by a $7 million sale of a Georgia O'Keeffe painting. But a judge has put the brakes on the deal.
So-called consumer-directed health care plans are touted as an easy way to cut costs for employers. But the high deductible options hit female employees the hardest, because they have more health care needs.
Financial Times columnist Lucy Kellaway is OK with lying on the job. In fact, she believes the corporate world can't function without little white lies to get through the day.
A U.N. report warns poor countries will be hit hardest with famine, fresh water shortages, and coastal flooding unless global warming is slowed. Solving the problem will require a huge infusion of cash from Western nations.
The U.S. Office of Management and Budget now has an online database of more than 13,000 congressional earmarks from the 2005 budget — $19 billion worth of pork benefitting some big companies.
Splenda has overtaken the sugar substitutes market, but little blue rival Equal says it's only done so with deceptive marketing claims. The case goes before a Philadelphia court Monday.
Twelve years after a previous attempt to acquire the automaker, billionaire Kirk Kerkorian has bid $4.5 billion for Chrysler. But if anyone's going to stand in his way, it could be the auto workers union.
CEO bonuses were up 13% last year. Some say efforts to link executive pay to performance are working, but critics argue that the rules of the game have been rigged to ensure a big payday.
Digital downloads are forever changing the way we find and listen to music — and that's changing the way the whole industry works, says Daily Variety's Mike Speier.
Two of the world's biggest labor unions are talking about merging. If Britain's Unite and United Steel Workers in the U.S. and Canada join forces it would create an international behemoth of a workers union.
The latest UN report on climate change puts forth the bleakest outlook yet, saying warming will cause more damage than previously forecast — and sooner.
The tiny town of Knock, Ireland has become a popular Catholic pilgrimage since residents say they saw an apparition of Virgin Mary in 1879. And a million and a half visitors each year equal a million and a half consumers.
Venezuela's Hugo Chavez has reversed his pro-ethanol stance on the heels of an announced ethanol partnership between the U.S. and Brazil. Probably realized his political influence would be eroded by widespread adoption of the biofuel.
After militant violence had forced a shutdown, Royal Dutch Shell is resuming oil production in the Niger River Delta. Bob Moon examines the effect the news had on the market.
Courtesy of "Lose Weight, Have More Energy & Be Happier in 10 Days" by Peter Glickman
Get a glass of lemon juice, throw in a little maple syrup and a few dashes of cayenne pepper and you've got the latest weight-loss craze. Stacey Vanek Smith examines the dieting industry — and tries the cleansing fast herself.
The bottled water industry makes $10 billion per year in sales. Commentator Benjamin Barber says that money is better off in the hands of Third World countries that don't have the convenience of a sink.
The Chinese economy is growing faster than government officials expected. For the sixth time in less than a year, regulators have told Chinese banks they need to hang on to more reserves.
This Sunday night starts the last nine episodes of HBO's "The Sopranos." What's HBO going to do now? Kai Ryssdal talks about new programming with TV critic Aaron Barnhart.
A national Internet database being launched on Monday will help retailers defend their products against in-store theft. Jeff Tyler looks at the hidden costs consumers pay for shoplifters.
Subprime lending casts a wide net. Steve Tripoli takes us through different types of subprime loans and the areas where lenders set up shop — and not just the poor communities are targeted.
Iams and Eukanuba this week became the first brands to finally start doing some damage control after that massive pet food recall. They placed ads in 59 newspapers and launched an outreach campaign to retailers. But what took so long?
Chris Farrell foresees a spring housing season with home prices headed back to 2003 levels, a market correction that's bound to lure the Federal Reserve into lowering interest rates.
A compound produced naturally by tomato plants might be just what you need to keep insects away this summer. It doesn't have that bug spray smell and it's safe for kids, which could make it a best-seller.
Violent uprisings forced Shell to shutter half its operations in the Niger Delta last year, but now the oil company says it'll resume full production there within six months. Some think it's an overly optimistic plan.
It's getting harder for small businesses to find affordable group coverage, a frustrating dilemma for people with pre-existing conditions — especially since even some insurers that are cutting contracts support universal coverage.
Wal-Mart's been accused of spying on private citizens, vendors and shareholders alike. So far no one's saying those practices broke laws, but a U.S. attorney has been looking into it.
Google has introduced a new feature called My Maps that lets you save locations and directions — with photos and video — and then share them with your friends or the world.
Cable's Discovery is set to launch a new channel next year focused entirely on eco-friendly living. It's betting on consumers'— and advertisers'— continued interest in everything green.
Music's Internet age and a wave of geek pride have led to . . . nerds rapping. About computers and video games and sci-fi. Some are even touring and making enough cash to live off. No joke yo.
Housing costs have risen so high in some cities that entire regions are out of reach for most first-time home buyers. And in those areas, it's becoming a slow drain for the economy as a whole.
The first transatlantic stock exchange launches in Paris today following the merger between the New York Stock Exchange and Euronext. It could be just the beginning of a movement toward a global stock market.
March sales figures were down nearly 10 percent for the automaker. Analysts say it was a cutback in fleet and truck sales that did it, but Ford's hoping its new Flex crossover vehicle will rev up revenues.
Good news for consumers: BMI and United Airlines are seeking approval to form an alliance that will provide a seamless experience for passengers traveling between the U.S. and Europe when the open skies treaty takes effect.
Most Congress members are enjoying spring recess this week, but 10 Senate leaders are working through the break to try to come to a compromise on immigration reform.
So far the rental market hasn't really been affected by the subprime mortgage crisis. But as more struggling homeowners are forced to return to the rental market, it's bound to impact prices and availability.
Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich says presidential hopefuls — and the American public — would be better served if candidates sent their consultants packing, waited a year and then spoke their minds.
If you're doing business in a dangerous foreign country, it helps to know someone who can open some doors. In this installment of "Working," our profile of workers around the globe, we put our trust in a fixer.
In a deal today with satellite provider EchoStar, Google announced it will be auctioning off ad space on the DISH Network — with prices based largely on what people actually watch.
The state-owned Russian airline may snap up a big chunk of the Italian airline's stock. Alitalia has been losing money for six of seven years, losing half a billion dollars in taxpayers' cash just last year.
President Bush scolded Democrats in a White House press conference today for passing funding bills that called for deadlines on troop withdrawl from Iraq. He vowed to veto any bill that imposed timelines.
Moody's ranks financial institutions based on risk. Recently, it changed its methodology and upgraded some 150 banks based on likelihood of government bailouts. Met with ridicule, Moody's is now reversing course and dozens of banks face downgrades.
One influential data company is factoring climate change into its prediction that the coming hurricane season will be a rough one. And it's having a big effect on on hurricane insurance rates.
The U.S. immigration office had a one-day window open to receive H1B visas for skilled foreign workers. The rush — and subsequent 65,000 application limit — has high-tech companies flustered.
Physics professor Lawrence Krauss lectures that universities aren't really businesses, and that university presidents who act as high-powered CEOs and run them like they are risk faculty revolts.
There's been no confirmation that the tainted wheat gluten found in Del Monte's pet food caused any cats or dogs to die — or that it's even a risk to humans. But that hasn't stopped some people from worrying.
Researchers have made a breakthrough discovery that could help alleviate blood bank shortages and take a lot of pressure off type O blood donors. They've found a way to change type A, B and AB blood into universal type O.
The drug company has agreed to pay $34.7 million to settle an investigation into improper promotion of Genotropin, even though it took place before Pfizer bought the company that made the growth hormone.
A day after Apple and EMI announced a deal to provide music downloads minus copy protection, Apple's been accused of breaking E.U. competition law for selling music at different prices in different countries.
Eight universities will reimburse students over $3 million to settle charges that they accepted kickbacks to steer them toward "preferred lenders." Citibank is paying up too, but many other schools and lenders are still under investigation.
A new report predicts the housing market will suffer greater fallout yet from the collapse of the subprime mortgage market. UCLA's Anderson Forecast says some non-subprime mortgages now appear unstable.
The Tribune Company is comprised of 11 newspapers, 23 TV stations — and 20,000 employees. Jeff Tyler has the story on why the financing under new owner Sam Zell is making some workers nervous.
How can the record companies stay alive when American consumers trade over a billion music tracks freely online every month? Commentator Celia Hirschman offers a win-win solution for labels, artists and fans.
The Supreme Court ruled today that the EPA has the right to limit auto-emissions of carbon dioxide. As Steve Henn reports, this puts more pressure on the Bush Administration to act.
Before there was Goldman Sachs or Morgan Stanley, there was Lazard Freres. Kai Ryssdal talks to author William Cohan on his book about the financial firm's legacy on Wall Street.
The TV show Prison Break is the hottest series in China, thanks to the millions of fans who download the show illegally. Scott Tong reports on the power of digital word-of-mouth in the world's biggest consumer market.
Ads for the drug Celebrex return tonight after a two-year absence, but the focus will be on the aspirin's potential dangers rather than its benefits. Helen Palmer reports on the product's marketing makeover.
As more and more young people opt to leave Israel's kibbutzim, those remaining have been forced to seek out new types of financial security to ensure they'll be taken care of in old age.
Newsweek's Allan Sloan says General Motors' plan to fund its worker pensions is performing so well, you might even argue it's subsidizing the rest of the company.
Faced with broad fallout from a weak economy and a widespread foreclosure crisis, Ohio is putting up state-backed bonds to provide a pool of refinancing money to help some struggling homeowners.
Apple had previously called on the big three record labels to remove digital rights management restrictions on their downloadable music — and this morning EMI announced that it's willing to play along.
Skilled foreign workers can apply for H-1B visas starting today, but they won't last long. Critics say the quota needs to be raised, but efforts to revamp the system keep getting caught up in the larger immigration debate.
Britain's largest drug company, GlaxoSmithKline, reportedly will meet with the WHO Friday to discuss ways to provide developing countries with low-cost vaccines against the H5N1 avian flu virus. Indonesia made sure of it.
