Americans will spare no expense to have a gorgeous, flawless wedding. That's probably why it's a $161 billion industry. Tess Vigeland discusses the cost of matrimony with author Rebecca Mead.
Think you know how much to have on hand for retirement and when to start using that money?
Tess Vigeland does some interesting new calculations with economics professor Laurence Kotlikoff.
Nothing says summer like funnel cakes and rollercoasters. We can see the folks behind the counter powdering our fried dough, but who's behind that wild ride?
As we hit the summer driving season and gas prices swell, we can't help but look for a culprit. Tess Vigeland talks barrels with Severin Borenstein of the University of California's Energy Institute.
Big buyout firms have been on a shopping spree lately, taking public companies off the market. Kai Ryssdal talked with Fortune magazine's Adam Lashinsky about what it all means.
Former M_A_S*H star Mike Farrell says it's time for television to end its barrage of unreal "reality" shows and provide programming with some very real material.
Why do some pharmaceutical shares tend to experience significant ups and downs just before a doctors' conference? It's not coincidence. Bob Moon reports.
The remote Himalayan nation of Bhutan recently sent its first trade delegation to Los Angeles. Their goal: How to adapt to business culture without losing their own. Lisa Napoli reports.
Fluency in English is considered key to success in South Korea. So the country is creating opportunities for citizens to visit English-speaking locales — and one's not too far from Seoul. Rico Gagliano checked it out.
Starting Monday, China will allow its currency to rise or fall 0.5% a day. The limit used to be 0.3%. The action comes amid pressure from the U.S. and Europe to remove such controls. Alisa Roth reports.
From national fires to the approach of hurricane season, it's more important than ever to have good homeowner's insurance. Alisa Roth preps us for the right policy.
Four presidents, two prime ministers and a king are among the 11 members of a club addressing the problem of decreasing foreign aid to countries showing some progress. Orly Halpern reports.
Compamines are global, capital is global… why not labor unions? The Teamsters boss visits China as the emerging economic giant considers a new law giving bite to China's mostly toothless labor protections.
British Airways has admitted to breaches of competition laws and set aside $700 million to pay for that mistake. And that's not the only trouble creating turbulence for the airline, Stephen Beard reports.
With some 100 world-class cyclists accused of doping and longtime sponsors considering pulling their support from the Tour de France, the sport of cycling has truly reached a crisis point. Diana Nyad says science is its best hope for a cure.
Workplace monitoring is pretty much a fact of life these days. Most companies do it one way or another, as new technology makes it easier to spy on employees. So privacy advocates are pushing for some new ground rules. Jeremy Hobson reports.
House-hunters in the U.K. — particularly would-be first-time buyers — are getting desperate as property prices there continue to rise higher and higher and higher. Stephen Beard has this story.
We're still watching plenty of TV, but one of the big stories coming out of this year's upfronts is how to count all those Internet downloads when it comes to ratings and ad dollars says Variety's Mike Speier.
There's a lot of money to be made curing insomnia — about $6 billion last year alone, according to a new report. And that dollar amount is only expected to grow over the next decade. Janet Babin tells us why.
Rising land values are putting the squeeze on trailer parks. In Washington state so many have closed it's turned into a full-blown housing crisis. Sam Eaton reports.
The upfronts, where TV execs go before advertisers to pitch their new line-ups, keep getting bigger and more important. TV critic Aaron Barnhart talks with Kai Ryssdal about the changes he's seeing.
Forget about the tired, the poor, the huddled masses. . . If a new Senate proposal becomes law, immigrants will need a tip-top resume and bankable skills to come to this country. John Dimsdale reports.
Part of Ben Bernanke's job now involves hearing the differing views of his predecessor. Steve Tripoli looks at whether the Fed chief could be a little irked by the attention Alan Greenspan's attracting.
The World Bank has announced that President Paul Wolfowitz is resigning. Kai Ryssdal spoke with Krishna Guha at the Financial Times about the organization's future — whoever is in charge.
Presidential candidates are focusing on social networking websites like MySpace to reach younger voters. How are they doing? Youth Radio's Alana Germany checked it out.
With congressional Democrats preparing legislation to raise federal tax rates, commentator Stephen Moore says The Gipper's economic philosophy no longer holds sway in Washington. But in the rest of the world . . .
The credit industry has been allowed to aggressively pursue low-income borrowers and that's made a bad situation worse for many poor Americans. Chris Farrell says federal regulators are overdue to step in and stop the cycle of abuse.
The NBA is capitalizing on its growing international appeal and opening up shop in London. The league says it wants to be closer to its European fans, whose numbers are growing by leaps and bounds, so to speak. Pat Loeb has details.
We'll take ours protein-style. It isn't hard to find regulars at some well-known fast-food restaurants ordering "secret" menu items. And allowing this off-the-menu behavior can be a very smart business move, Pat Loeb reports.
Britain is beginning to see hints that its economic bubble could burst, so perhaps Gordon Brown's less cheerful disposition will be an apt fit for the nation's mood when he takes over as prime minister next month. Stephen Beard reports.
Both Republicans and Democrats seem to be having regrets about last week's free trade agreement, but some are hoping the fleeting moment of bipartisanship will last long enough to push a couple deals through. John Dimsdale reports.
Lawmakers will soon consider whether to insure crops that could serve as important sources of alternative fuels, but there are a lot of unanswered questions. Jeremy Hobson reports.
Toyota is betting big on the future of the hybrid vehicle market with a super-deluxe luxury Lexus model, available in the U.S. sometime this summer. It's part of a growing "green" trend in the auto industry. Janet Babin reports.
Wars in Sudan have almost always been over scarce resources above ground. Gretchen Wilson reports there's a much quieter and more fundamental conflict developing for what may or may not lie beneath.
Congressional Democrats announced their 2008 budget plan, totalling $2.9 trillion. But is it worth the reams of paper it's written on? Budget watcher Maya McGuineas takes a look at the details with Kai Ryssdal.
The Sarbanes-Oxley law that was intended to halt corporate financial fraud, has cost companies millions of dollars and lots of hassles. But a new survey reports last year those costs were down 23 percent. Ashley Milne-Tyte reports.
More men are selling the famous plastic bowls and utensils. Sean Cole talked with one top seller who just couldn't contain his enthusiasm for the product.
Commentator Robert Reich says that by changing the rules on how student loans are paid off, more graduates could pursue their true callings and enrich their communities.
A new study says the United States is the only advanced economy that doesn't require employers to offer paid vacations. Is that a bad thing? Jeremy Hobson reports.
Some states are considering having their pension systems pull investments from companies doing business in Iran. Congress got into the act today, too. Steve Tripoli tells us who's saying what about divestment this time.
The nation's top retailer of PCs is accused of luring buyers with deceptive lending practices and lax tech support. It's just the latest in a string of bad news. Janet Babin talks to Scott Jagow.
We're losing the war against Afghanistan's illicit opium trade, and losing big. It's time to allow poppy cultivation there for the legal pharmaceutical market, says commentator Reza Aslan, for the sake of their security and ours.
Past attempts at reforming the French economy have not been met kindly by its labor unions, but Nicolas Sarkozy was sworn in as that country's new president today and he may have a better shot at success than his predecessors.
Cerberus and Chrysler insist the company won't be junked and sold for parts, but the mushrooming trend toward privatization has prompted workers unions to pressure venture capitalists to share the wealth. John Dimsdale explains.
Microlending is having a major impact in Kenya, sparking as many as 40,000 small businesses as its poorest residents take advantage of the new opportunity. And with reputations on the line, the payback rate is outstanding, Gretchen Wilson reports.
Tony Blair will visit today with President Bush for the final time as Britain's prime minister. Their relationship has seriously damaged Blair's popularity back home, but he's not going out as Bush's lapdog, Stephen Beard reports.
Goldman Sachs is hosting a gathering of business owners who voluntarily abide by rules to use local products and treat workers fairly. It may be a sign the trend is growing. Ashley Milne-Tyte reports.
There's an increasing chance that the stuff you use to clean your face or shampoo your hair contains submicroscopic particles. But while the list of consumer products using nanomaterials is growing fast, regulation of them is not. Janet Babin reports.
The financial news giant Reuters has agreed to a merger with its Canadian rival Thomson. The price tag's a bit more than $17 billion. Lisa Napoli reports.
The Energy Department says gas inventories are low and, despite high prices, demand just keeps rising. And food prices are going up as well. Pat Loeb reports.
More than 300 big papers are read by almost 160 million people in India. And with people becoming more literate, the number and size of newspapers keeps growing. Miranda Kennedy reports.
Subprime lenders are going bankrupt and Congress is holding hearings on predatory lending. But commentator and economist Susan Lee still thinks there's an upside to subprime.
CEOs of six big hotel chains have written an open letter to Congress demanding action on immigration reform. One of them, Bill Marriott of Marriott International, spoke with Kai Ryssdal.
About a century after they were first formed on socialist ideals, at least half of Israel's kibbutzim are leaving collective econonomics behind. Shia Levitt reports.
Casino giant Harrah's announced it will team up with Jimmy Buffett on a $700 million casino and resort in Biloxi, Miss. It'll be the biggest investment in the state's Gulf Coast since Hurricane Katrina. Steve Tripoli reports.
Something just doesn't feel right about having to answer to a boss, no? Freelance speechwriter James Braly explains that you take a big chance putting your livelihood in one person's hands. Better to spread the risk around. And give him a condo already.
Reuters and Canadian publisher Thomson have a $17.2 billion deal. Combined, the companies would create the world's biggest provider of financial news and data, but the proposed merger could face regulatory and union problems, Stephen Beard reports.
MySpace is back in the hot seat. Eight states have asked the social networking site to hand over info on registered sex offenders and remove their profiles. MySpace says it's already working on the latter, Pat Loeb reports.
Cerberus may have picked up Chrysler for a steal if it can get the automaker back on a profitable course. We sent Steve Tripoli to find out whether analysts think a comeback is really in the works and what it'll take.
If you can think it up, you can sell it on a bumper sticker. Coffee mug. T-shirt. Thong (yes, the underwear). CafePress.com makes it easy to market your political views or random thoughts. A lot of people are doing it — and making money, Sean Cole reports.
A new federal report says the sticker shock at many American supermarkets is directly related to the rising cost of energy and a bigger appetite across the globe. Janet Babin reports.
Vietnam and China haven't exactly had the friendliest history. But time, as they say, heals all wounds and recently the winds of trade have been pushing the neighboring countries closer than ever. Scott Tong explains.
A first-class postage stamp rose 2 cents to 41 cents today. One rate that didn't go up today but will in July is for mailing periodicals. Jeremy Hobson reports that for some small magazines it's a welcome delay.
Nine years after acquiring Chrysler, Daimler is spending $650 million just to get somebody to take the car company off its hands. Kai Ryssdal totals it up.
Finding, keeping and affording health insurance is a big headache for small businesses. Steve Tripoli reports on the challenge faced by a company he's been watching for years.
Conventional wisdom is that with Democrats in control of Congress, President Bush could well get a new immigration law. But commentator Jeff Birnbaum says the Democrats aren't so eager for change.
Cable, DSL and voice-over-Internet companies are now required to let the government tap into people's Internet communications. It's an expensive proposition. Ashley Milne-Tyte reports.
President Bush has directed his cabinet to come up with rules that would lead to a 20% cut in gasoline use in the United States within 10 years. John Dimsdale reports.
Today's 2-cent bump in stamp prices will soon be followed by another postal rule change that gives big magazine publishers big discounts. The Nation's Katrina vanden Heuvel warns that could stamp out important voices from small publications like hers.
It should be easier for law enforcement to snoop on your online activity today. It's the deadline for cable, broadband and Internet phone companies to have built backdoor access into their networks for the Feds. Janet Babin explains.
Lawmakers are scrambling to come up with a compromise on immigration reform before '08 politicking makes that impossible, but the two sides can't agree on which workers to let into the country. Steve Henn reports.
Mayors from around the world are meeting in the Big Apple today for the Large Cities Climate Summit. The goal is to figure out how to reduce their carbon footprints, but it's no walk in Central Park, Sarah Gardner reports.
The U.S. just isn't attracting foreign investment the way it used to, so Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson wants to see some changes in our playbook. And if he can push his agenda through, American companies may enjoy the new rules as well, Jill Barshay reports.
Daimler is handing over the Chrysler keys. Private equity firm Cerberus will buy an 80.1% stake in the struggling automaker for $7.4 billion. The deal was applauded by European shareholders, but not everyone's convinced it'll pay off, Stephen Beard reports.
Whispers of a possible interest rate cut swirling around last week's Fed meeting left a lot of folks on Wall Street with fingers crossed, but Newsweek's Allan Sloan thinks rates are already much lower than they should be.
